SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

Life  Story, 
Letters,  and 
Reminiscences 


From  the  Portraif 

Painled  in  J888 

bv  Sir  Joh  n  Mi  fin  is. 


C/t^^r^^^U 


(M^^€t 


Sir  Arthur  Sullivan 

LIFE    STORY,  LETTERS 
AND     REMINISCENCES 


BY 


Arthur    Lawrence 


WITH  CRITIQUE  BY  B.    W.    FINDON  AND    BIBLIOGRAPHY 
BY    V/ILFRID    BENDALL 


HERBERT   S.  STONE   AND    COMPANY 

CHICAGO  AND  NEW  YORK 

MDCCCC 


COPYRIGHT      1899,     BY 
HERBERT  S.  STONE  &  CO 


LIBRARY 


^\0 


PREFACE 


It  is  of  importance  to  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  and 
myself  that  I  should  explain  how  this  book  came 
o   to  be  written.    Averse  as  Sir  Arthur  is  to  the 
^    "  interview  "  in  journalism,  I  could  not  resist  the 
temptation  to  ask  him  to  let  me  write  something 
of  the  sort  when  I  first  had  the  pleasure  of  meet- 
ing him — not  in  regard  to  journalistic  matters — 
^  some  years   ago.      That   permission   was    most 
%  genially  granted,  and  the  little  chat  which  I  had 
with  him  then,  in  regard  to  the  opera  which  he 
was  writing,  appeared  in  The  World.    Subsequent 
^  conversations  which  I   was  privileged   to   have 
^  with  Sir   Arthur,  and  the   fact  that   there   was 
'  .^  nothing  procurable  in  book  form  concerning  our 
greatest  and  most  popular   composer — save   an 
interesting  little  monograph  which  formed  part 
of  a  small  volume  published  some  years  ago  on 


A^ 


^m'VGQ 


6  PREFACE 

English  Musicians  by  Mr.  Charles  Willeby — 
gave  me  the  notion  of  writing  this  book. 

Sir  Arthur's  only  objection  to  my  proposition 
was  one  which  did  credit  to  his  modesty  :  that  he 
hardly  thought  a  record  of  his  life  and  recollec- 
tions would  be  of  interest  to  the  public  ;  but  as 
an  item  of  the  vast  number,  all  the  world  over, 
who  know  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan's  work,  and  who 
may  therefore  desire,  so  to  speak,  to  have  better 
personal  acquaintance  with  the  composer,  I 
excused  myself  from  sharing  this  modest 
opinion,  nor  have  I  any  fear  that  the  music- 
loving  public  will  fail  to  justify  me  in  regard 
to  my  attitude  upon  this  particular  point. 

So  much  byway  of  explaining  that  the  respon- 
sibility of  writing  and  publishing  this  book  is 
entirely  my  own.  On  the  other  hand,  having,  I 
hope,  made  this  reservation  clear,  I  must  add 
that  throughout  a  work  which  has  been  in  the 
doing  of  it  so  pleasant  to  me,  I  have  had  Sir 
Arthur's  heartiest  co-operation,  and  the  book 
is   published   with    his  goodwill  and   sanction. 


PREFACE  7 

Indeed,  I  have  been  given  every  facility.  Sir 
Arthur  has  placed  in  my  hands  the  letters  which 
he  wrote  home  over  a  period  of  some  thirty 
years,  as  well  as  letters  which  have  been  written 
to  him,  and  the  like.  Throughout  the  book — 
and  more  especially  in  Chapter  XIII. — will  be 
found  my  transcription  of  notes  made  during 
the  many  conversations  which  I  have  had  with 
Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  for  this  special  purpose, 
including  anecdotes  and  so  forth  which  he  has 
given  me  on  the  understanding  that  I  could 
make  use  of  them  or  not,  as  I  saw  fit.  More- 
over, Sir  Arthur  has  revised  and  passed  the 
proofs  of  those  chapters  dealing  with  incidents 
in  his  life,  thus  enabling  me  to  claim  accuracy 
and  authenticity  for  this  work,  and,  I  need 
hardly  add,  leaving  me  with  a  debt  of  gratitude 
which,  if  I  had  the  ability,  this  is  not  the  place 
to  express. 

I  shall  not  be  guilty  of  any  immodesty  in 
suggesting  that  much  utility  and  interest  apper- 
tains to  this  book  by  reason  of  the  complete  and 


8  PREFACE 

accurate  appendix  compiled  by  Mr.  Wilfrid 
Bendall,  and  by  the  three  chapters  on  '*  Sullivan 
as  a  Musician  "  contributed  by  a  musical  critic  of 
Mr.  B.  W.  Findon's  ability  and  experience. 

If  the  reader,  unhampered  by  any  short- 
comings of  my  own  as  biographer,  shall  find 
the  life-story  of  the  composer  as  interesting  and 
refreshing  as  I  have  found  it,  I  trust  I  need 
make  no  apology  for  having  written  the  biog- 
raphy of  a  man  during  his  lifetime,  whilst  there 
is  an  obvious  and  not  to  be  over-estimated 
advantage  in  having  it  added  to — and  revised — 
by  no  less  an  authority  than  the  subject  of  it. 

THE   AUTHOR. 


CONTENTS 

FAOE 

PREFACE vii 

CHAP. 

I.     BOYHOOD  (1842-1857) I 

Chapel  Royal  —  Mendelssohn  Scholarship — Leaves 
Chapel  Royal  for  Leipzig 

n.    AT  LEIPZIG  (1858-1861) 24 

Musical  Stagnation  in  England — Catholicity  at  Leip- 
zig— Hard  Work  and  Holidays — Writes  "Tempest" 
Music 

III.  FIRST  PUBLIC  SUCCESS  (1861-1866) 49 

Charles   Dickens — First   Visit  to    Paris — Rossini — 

Organist    St.    Michael's    and  at    Covent    Garden 

Opera — Visits  Ireland — Germ  of  English  Comic 
Opera 

IV.  SECOND  VISIT  TO  PARIS  (1867-1871)     ....     69 

Tennyson — Paris  in  the  time  of  the  Commune — 
"The  Prodigal  Son"  —  Emperor  and  Empress 
Napoleon — Prophetic  words  from  Prince  Henry  of 
Battenburg 


X  CONTENTS 

CHAP,  PAGE 

V.     SULLIVAN  MEETS  GILBERT  (1872-1875)    ...     83 
Musician  Laureate — ^Meeting  with  W.   S.   Gilbert — 
'  'Thespis' ' — '  'The  Lightof  the  World'  '—Sims  Reeves 
— "Trial  by  Jury" — Lord  Chief  Justice  Cockburn — 
Desbarrolles 


VL     IDLING  IN  ITALY  (1875-1877) no 

Conductorship — Visits  Italy — Death  of  Fred  Sulli- 
van—"The  Lost  Chord"— "Henry  VIIL"— "The 
Sorcerer" — Sir  Coutts  and  Lady  Lindsay — Princess 
Louise 


VII.     AMERICAN  REMINISCENCES  (1878-1880)   ...  126 
"H.M.S.    Pinafore" — Promenade  Concerts — "The 
Pinafore"  Fever  in  America — First  Visit  to  America 
— American  Reminiscences — American  Piracy  and 
the  "Pirates  of  Penzance" 

VIIL     THE  MOST  POPULAR  OPERA  (1878-1885)      .     .  154 
"lolanthe" —  "Princess   Ida"  —  "Patience"  —  "The 
Mikado' ' — His    Mother  Dies  —  Knighthood  — '  'The 
Golden  Legend" — Visits  Salt  Lake  City 

IX.    SIR    ARTHUR'S    FAVOURITE    OPERA   (1886- 

1889) •    .     .  174 

"Ruddigore" — "Yeoman  of  the  Guard" — Emperor 
and  Empress  of  Germany — "The  Gondoliers" 

X.     DISSOLUTION  OF  PARTNERSHIP  (18S9-1898)  .  191 
Sullivan    and  Gilbert     Part    Company — "Haddon 
Hall"  — "Utopia"— "The  Foresters"— "The  Chief- 
tain"— "The  Beauty  Stone" 


CONTENTS  xi 

CBAP.  PAGE 

XI.     OUR  LACK  OF  PATRIOTISM  IN  MUSIC  ...  200 
The  Jubilee  Procession — Letter  to  the  Times — Con- 
sensus of  Opinion  on  the  Subject — Apathy  of  the 
Press 


XII.     PERSONALITY  AND  METHODS   OF  WORK    .  212 
Preferences    and    Recreations — Hard    Work  before 
"Inspiration" — Rhythm    before    Melody — How   the 
Operas  have  been  Produced 

XIII.     ANECDOTAL 232 

In  the  Auction-room — ^Thirty  years  afterwards — 
Old  Church  at  Sandhurst — Rev.  Thomas  Helmore 
and  the  Boys— Battle  of  the  Alma — Early  Composi- 
tion— Sterndale  Bennett — Bach's  room  at  Leipzig — 
Amateur  Choral  Societies — Gladstone  and  Disraeli — 
Burnand  and  his  Book — Byron  and  Palgrave — With 
the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  on  the  Herctiles — The  Ger- 
man Emperor  —  Peterhof  —  In  the  Baltic — Buffalo 
Etiquette — "The  Mikado"  plagiarised  in  real  life — 
Water  and  Good  Society — The  Gentlemanly  Guide 
— Earthquake  at  Monte  Carlo — Coincidences — Ten- 
nyson—Sullivan's Grand-parents  and  Napoleon  I.  at 
St.  Helena 


XIV.     "ABOUT  MUSIC" 262 

An  Address  Delivered  at  the  Town  Hall,  Birming- 
ham, on  October  19,  1888,  by  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan 


SULLIVAN  AS  A  COMPOSER 290 

His    Place  among  Contemporaries — Sacred  Music — 
Secular  and  Dramatic  Music.     By  B.  W.  Findon 


xii  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

APPENDIX 329 

Comprising  a  Complete  List  of  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan's 
Work.    Compiled  by  Wilfrid  Bendall. 


Sir  Arthur  Sullivan 

HIS  LIFE  STORY 


CHAPTER   I 

BOYHOOD 

(1842-1857) 

"  Chapel  Royal — Mendelssohn  Scholarship — Leaves 
Chapel  Royal  for  Leipzig. 

ARTHUR  SULLIVAN  was  fortunate  in 
regard  to  two  circumstances  which  I 
deem  to  be  the  best  incentives  to  hard 
work  and  achievement — he  had  the  best  of  good 
parents,  to  whom  he  was  devotedly  attached,  and, 
although  there  was  no  unpleasant  straitment  of 
means,  he  knew  that  he  would  have  to  earn  his 
own  living. 

The  word  "  prodigy"  is  an  unpleasant  one. 
The  infant  phenomenon  may  prove  interesting, 
but  whether  the  prodigy  produces  in  one  a  feeling 
of  interest  or  of  boredom  one  can  scarcely  claim 
that  the  prodigy  shall  be  congratulated  as  such. 


2  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Too  often  exceptional  ability  at  a  tender  age 
implies  an  abnormal  and  unhealthy  development 
of  powers  which,  by  reason  of  the  hot-house 
processes  which  have  attended  their  growth,  are 
subject  to  premature  arrest  and  decay.  Innumer- 
able instances  will  come  to  mind  of  great  men  in 
every  profession,  artists  in  every  sense  of  the 
word,  who  have  been  dunces  at  school  and  whose 
powers,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  have  not  been 
apparent  during  the  time  of  their  earlier  develop- 
ment. On  the  other  hand,  it  is  not  surprising  if 
the  extreme  ability  which  we  call  genius  should 
manifest  itself  early,  and  this  was  certainly  the 
case  with  young  Sullivan. 

Born  in  London,  on  May  13,  1842,  Arthur  was 
the  younger  of  two  sons,  the  elder  of  whom, 
Frederic,  is  frequently  referred  to  in  this  work. 
His  father,  Thomas  Sullivan,  an  Irishman  and 
a  musician,  was  bandmaster  at  the  Royal  Military 
College,  Sandhurst,  from  1845  to  1856,  and  took 
part  in  the  Military  School  of  Music  at  Kneller 
Hall,  from  1857  until  his  death.  The  mother, 
Mary,  daughter  of  James  Coghler,  was  of  an  old 
Italian  family,  named  Righi.  Here  one  might 
make  almost  any  deduction  one  pleased  on  the 


HIS   LIFE  STORY  3 

score  of  heredity,  or  the  peculiar  advantage  of  this 
admixture  of  Celtic  and  Italian  blood  in  this  most 
English  of  Englishmen. 

The  band  which  his  father  conducted  was 
small,  but  extremely  efficient,  forThomas  Sullivan 
loved  his  craft  and  was  a  first-rate  musician.  His 
elder  son  Frederic,  although  very  fond  of  music, 
was  educated  and  brought  up  as  an  architect,^ 
possessing  also  a  good  voice  and  a  penchant  for 
using  it,  more  especially  in  the  effective  delivery 
of  comic  songs,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  almost 
from  infancy  Arthur  showed  that  he  had  different 
qualities  and  ambitions  and  gifts.  An  enthusiast 
in  his  art;  all  his  efforts  were  directed  towards 
composition,  in  which  aim,  it  is  needless  to  say, 
his  father  gave  him  every  encouragement.  It 
would  seem  that  while  there  is  no  art  which  asks 
more  of  good  education  than  music  there  is  no 
faculty  which  is  of  a  more  instinctive  character 
than  the  melodic  faculty,  but,  whether  or  not  this 

1  Lord  Russell  of  Killowen  tells  a  little  anecdote  of  young 
Frederic  Sullivan.  It  seems  that  at  that  time  our  Lord  Chifef 
Justice,  who  was  then,  of  course,  Mr.  Charles  Russell,  had  occa- 
sion to  examine  Frederic  as  a  witness,  in  the  course  of  which  he 
said  to  him,  "You  are  an  architect,  I  believe,  Mr.  Sullivan?"  to 
which  Frederic  replied,  "I  have  been  an  architect,  but  am  now 
on  the  stage,"  and  added,  "you  see,  I  still  draw  big  houses." 


4  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

holds  good  by  way  of  generalisation,  how  early 
young  Sullivan's  genius  found  some  expression 
may  be  realised  from  the  fact  that,  at  the  age  of 
eight,  he  had  written  his  first  piece  of  boyish  and, 
of  course,  immature  composition,  which  Sir 
Arthur  smilingly  tells  me  was  an  anthem,  "  By 
the  Waters  of  Babylon,"  while  his  first  mature 
composition,  the  music  to  Shakespeare's  "  Tem- 
pest," which  brought  him  fame  and  an  assured 
position  in  the  appreciation  of  the  public,  was 
written  at  the  age  of  eighteen.  It  should  be 
added  that  before  the  first-named  piece  had  been 
written  the  eight-year-old  boy  had  learned  to  play 
almost  every  wind  instrument  in  his  father's  band 
with  some  facility. 

In  his  own  words  his  knowledge  of  these  in- 
struments, among  them  the  flute,  clarionet,  horn, 
cornet,  trombone,  and  euphonium,  was  not  "  a 
mere  passing  acquaintance,  but  a  lifelong  and 
intimate  friendship."  It  was,  indeed,  an  acquire- 
ment by  no  means  necessarily  included  in  the 
curriculum  of  every  would-be  composer.  In  this 
way  he  had  gradually  learnt  the  peculiarities  of 
each  instrument,  where  it  was  strong  and  where 
it  was  weak — first  steps,  indeed,  in  the  branch  of 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  5 

his  art  and  an  acquirement  of  knowledge  which 
must  have  assisted  very  practically  his  ability  in 
orchestration. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  even  in  those 
days,  before  the  boy  had  attained  his  ninth  birth- 
day, his  tendencies,  his  aptitudes,  as  well  as  his 
professed  inclinations,  prevented  any  sort  of 
parental  uncertainty  as  to  the  career  of  the 
younger  boy,  and  though  no  doubt  maternal 
affection  might  account  for  the  circumstance,  I  am 
inclined  to  think  that  the  scrupulous  care  with 
which  Mrs.  Sullivan  preserved  all  his  boyish 
epistles  sent  to  her  when  he  had  left  home  is 
some  evidence  that,  even  then,  they  had  good 
hopes,  beyond  those  born  of  parental  fondness 
and  pride,  that  his  career  would  be  a  distinguished 
one. 

Young  Arthur  Sullivan  wrote  to  his  father  and 
mother  very  regularly  on  all  the  occasions  that  he 
was  away  from  home,  from  the  time  he  first  went 
to  school,  until  his  mother's  death,  a  blow  which 
fell  upon  him  long  after  he  had  obtained  a  posi- 
tion which,  even  in  their  most  sanguine  moments, 
neither  Mr.  nor  Mrs.  Sullivan  could  have  antici- 
pated, and  from  those  letters,  although  only  brief 


6  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

and  of  course  very  boyish  effusions,  I  shall  quote 
presently. 

It  is  no  small  credit  to  the  father — perhaps 
one  may  be  forgiven  for  commenting  upon  it — 
that,  notwithstanding  any  temptation,  he  avoided 
anything  in  the  nature  of  that  forcing  process  to 
which  I  have  already  alluded.  On  the  contrary, 
he  decided  to  send  the  boy  away  from  all  sound 
of  music  for  a  time,  and  placed  him  in  a  private 
school  at  Bayswater,  where  he  remained  until  he 
was  nearly  twelve  years  old. 

During  those  earlier  school-days,  however, 
there  could  be  but  one  subject  which  ever  re- 
mained uppermost  in  the  minds  of  father  and 
son,  and  at  last  the  boy  confessed  that  his  great 
ambition  was  to  become  a  member  of  the  choir 
of  either  the  Chapel  Royal  or  Westminster  Abbey, 
but  the  wish  was  opposed  on  the  ground  that 
the  education  was  not  the  best  to  be  had.  For  a 
time  he  gave  up  the  attack,  but  then  tried  the 
powers  of  persuasion  on  his  Bayswater  school- 
master, a  Mr.  Plees,  until  with  the  assent  of 
Mr.  Sullivan,  Mr.  Plees  finally  consented  to  take 
him  to  see  Sir  George  Smart,  the  organist  and 
composer  to  the  Chapels  Royal,  who  lived  at 


HISLIFESTORY  7 

that  time  in  the  house  in  which  Weber  spent  his 
last  moments  in  Great  Portland  Street.  Sir 
George  received  him  very  kindly  and  heard  him 
sing  "  With  Verdure  Clad,"  in  which  the  would- 
be  chorister  accompanied  himself;  with  the  re- 
sult that  he  was  sent  down  to  see  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Helmore,  the  master  of  the  Chapel 
Royal  boys.  The  address  given  then  was  a  house 
in  Onslow  Square.  Mr.  Plees  went  with  him,  but 
only  to  find  that  the  master  of  the  boys  had 
moved.  However,  the  agitated  youth,  always 
practical,  bethought  himself  of  inquiring  of  a  local 
tradesman,  and  finding  that  Mr.  Helmore  had 
moved  to  Cheyne  Walk,  Mr.  Plees  and  he  went 
there  together.  Arthur  Sullivan  had  an  ex- 
ceptionally good  treble  voice,  and  had  learned  to 
sing  those  arias  which  he  had  heard  at  home,  so 
that  the  result  of  Mr.Helmore's  examination  was 
well-nigh  a  foregone  conclusion.  Two  days 
afterwards  he  received  a  note  saying  that  he 
might  take  up  his  work  as  a  Chapel  Royal 
chorister  and  enter  the  school.  This  was  on 
Tuesday  in  Holy  Week,  1854.  On  the  following 
Thursday  he  had  learned  and  sung  the  treble 
part  in  Nares'  anthem  "  Blessed  is  He,"  and  not 


8  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

only  the  purity,  sweetness,  and  strength  of  his 
voice,  but  the  sympathetic  quality  of  his  render- 
ing— as  against  the  usual  boyish  rendering  of 
solos — called  forth  some  very  decided  approval 
on  the  part  of  his  master  and  of  many  others 
amongst  those  who  heard  him. 

Apart  from  the  musical  education,  the  fellow- 
ship with  the  boys  of  his  own  age,  many  of  them 
intending  to  adopt  music  as  a  profession,  must 
have  been  of  considerable  value  to  him,  and,  not 
least,  he  must  have  benefited  by  the  esprit-de-corps 
which  Mr.  Helmore  did  so  much  to  inspire. 
From  the  letters  which  he  wrote  home,  dated 
from  Cheyne  Walk,  it  is  not  difficult  to  see  that 
the  tone  of  the  place  was  a  healthy  one.  Truth 
compels  me  to  add  that  the  treatment  of  the  boys 
did  not  err  on  the  side  of  laxity,  for  in  one  letter 
there  is  the  terse  information  that  "  M.  was  caned 
because  he  did  not  know  the  meaning  of  for- 
tissimo." 

There  are  one  or  two  sentences  in  the  letters 
written  home  during  the  Chapel  Royal  period 
which,  although  they  cannot  be  of  a  particularly 
momentous  character,  are  interesting  in  so  far  as 
the  names  mentioned  remind  one  that  these  letters 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  9 

were  written  in  the  early  fifties,  and  in  so  far  as 
they  help  us  to  form  a  picture  of  the  bright-eyed, 
dark,  curly-haired  boy  who  was  destined  to  be- 
come the  most  popular  composer  of  our  own  time. 

It  would  he  purposeless  to  give  any  of  these 
letters  in  their  entirety,  or,  indeed,  to  do  more 
than  quote  very  briefly  from  letters  extending  over 
a  considerable  period,  but  it  may  be  interesting  to 
note  that  throughout  they  are  curiously  restrained 
and  mature  for  a  boy  of  twelve,  a  remark  which 
applies  also  to  the  handwriting.  Throughout  one 
is  sensible  that  they  are  from  a  boy  with  a  strong 
sense  of  duty,  and  of  the  importance  of  making 
the  best  use  of  the  short  time  before  him,  and  of 
doing  everything  to  the  very  best  of  his  abilities. 

With  an  intense  appreciation  of  home,  there  is 
an  abiding  anxiety  to  give  his  "  people  "  a  clear 
account  of  everything  that  goes  on.  Here  and 
there  one  gets  a  glimpse  of  his  little  economies, 
and  more  often  a  touch  of  ironic  humour,  but 
every  letter  bears  the  same  impress  of  seriousness 
and  restraint. 

In  one  of  them  he  writes  to  his  father:  "  We 
have  got  the  gold  clothes  to-day.  .  .  .  Will  you 
come  to  chapel  on  that  day?     If  you  do,  you  will 


lo  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

have  the  double  pleasure  of  seeing  me  togged  out 
and  hearing  me  sing  a  solo."  In  another  letter  he 
explains,  "We"  (the  Chapel  Royal  Choristers) 
"  were  going  home  for  a  party.  Before  we  got  to 
Buckingham  Palace,  we  were  attacked  by  a  lot  of 
boys,  but  a  man  taking  our  part,  and  we  making  a 
desperate  defence,  /  managed  to  get  home  safely." 
The  stress  on  the  last  words  is  a  good-humoured 
allusion  to  the  fact  that  they  had  to  execute  an 
undignified,  if  strategic,  retreat.  These  attacks 
were  of  constant  occurrence.  It  would  seem  that 
the  gold  coats  were  a  perpetual  irritant  to  the 
canaille. 

"  We  went  to  the  Bishop's  party  (at  Fulham 
Palace)  on  Thursday  and  had  such  a  jolly  time.  I 
sang  'With  Verdure  Clad,'  with  which  the  Bishop 
was  very  much  pleased,  and  patted  me  on  the 
head;  he  then  gave  us  half  a  crown  each.  So  I 
bought  *  Samson  '  when  I  went  to  Novello's,  as 
one  of  the  boys  owed  me  sixpence.  Shan't  I  be 
well  stocked  with  Oratorios?" 

In  another  there  is  an  allusion  to  his  stock  of 
wealth  and  the  intellectual  refreshment  which  his 
brother  Fred  had  provided.  "  I  want  some  more 
stamps  sent  me.     I  have  expended  nearly  all  my 


fS 


ARTHUR   SULLLJVAlNr 

AS    A    CHAPEL.    ROYAt,    CHORISTEH.        FROM    A    PBOTOGRAril. 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  ii 

money,  only  Captain  Ottley  gave  me  a  shilling  for 
running  a  race,  but  I  have  paid  a  good  deal  of  that 
to  the  Cricket  Club.  Fred  often  comes  to  see  me 
of  a  night  and  sings  us  comic  songs,"  one  of  which, 
according  to  quotation,  seemed  to  have  contained 
an  allusion  in  quite  a  Dickensy  manner  to  "  free 
spots  of  brandy  on  a  lump  of  sugar,  which  was 
the  rewing  of  him." 

"  Has  Helen  learned  any  fresh  races  on  the 
piano,  one  hand  after  the  other?  The  young 
ladies'  letters  were  very  nicely  written  and  indited. 
I  hope  they  are  getting  on  well  with  their  re- 
spective studies.  I  shall  give  them  a  lesson  or 
two  on  religious  instruction  when  I  get  home." 

On  October  6,  1856,  he  writes  to  say  that  he  is 
now  "first  boy,"  and  presumes  that  a  bottle  of 
"champagne  stuff"  will  be  drunk  on  the  strength 
of  it,  and  the  year  before,  apropos  of  Guy  Fawkes 
Day,"Theytalk  of  doing  away  with  the  services  for 
that  day  altogether,  and  let  the  poor  fellow  sleep 
in  his  grave  in  peace,  and  only  remember  that  it 
was  the  day  the  battle  of  Inkerman  was  fought, 
since  the  Roman  Catholics  helped  us  to  win  the 
day,  and  we  speak  so  badly  of  them  in  the  serv- 
ice." 


12  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

"  Yesterday  I  had  to  sing  a  long  solo  in  the 
Chapel  Royal,"  and  naming  the  then  Duchess  of 
Sutherland,  the  late  Lord  Wilton,  and  others  who 
were  present,  he  continues  :  "Watch  the  Times 
every  day,  and  most  likely  you  will  see  all  about 
it,  for  there  was  a  reporter  from  there,  and  he 
took  down  my  name  and  a  good  deal  else."  In 
another  he  reports  that  he  is  being  taken  to  Drury 
Lane  to  hear  Grisi  and  Mario. 

In  another  letter,  dated  May  20,  1857,  there  is 
a  fairly  decided  statement  of  opinion  for  a  boy  of 
fifteen.  "  I  enjoyed  the  Philharmonic  very  much 
last  Monday,  all  except  Rubinstein.  He  has 
wonderful  strength  in  the  wrists,  and  particularly 
so  in  octave  passages,  but  there  is  a  good  deal  of 
clap-trap  about  him.  As  for  his  composition,  it 
was  a  disgrace  to  the  Philharmonic.  I  never 
heard  such  wretched,  nonsensical  rubbish  ;  not 
two  bars  of  melody  or  harmony  together  through- 
out, and  yet  Mr.  E.  thinks  him  wonderful." 

The  following  extracts  will  give  a  glimpse  of 
the  more  serious  and  of  the  lighter  side  of  affairs 
with  him  at  the  Chapel  Royal  : 

"  When  I  had  composed  my  anthem  I  showed 
it  to  Sir  George  Smart,  who  told  me  it  did  me 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  13 

great  credit,  and  also  told  me  to  get  the  parts 
copied  out,  and  he  would  see  what  he  could  do 
with  it.  So  I  copied  them  out  and  he  desired  the 
sub-dean  to  have  it  sung,  and  it  was  sung.  The 
dean^  was  there  in  the  evening  and  he  called  me 
up  to  him  in  the  vestry  and  said  it  was  very  clever, 
and  said  that  perhaps  I  should  be  writing  an 
oratorio  some  day.  But  he  said  there  was  some- 
thing higher  to  attend  to,  and  then  Mr.  Helmore 
said  that  I  was  a  very  good  boy  indeed.  Where- 
upon he  shook  hands  with  me,  with  half  a  sov- 
ereign"— which  was  very  satisfactory  and  the 
first  money  earned  by  composition. 

In  another  letter  comes  a  reference  to  a  special 
form  of  recreation  :  "  Every  time  I  have  made 
up  my  mind  to  sit  down  and  write  to  you  some 
fellow  or  other  is  sure  to  turn  me  away  from  it  by 
asking  me  to  come  and  lead  our  'band,'  which, 
by-the-bye,  consists  of  two  French  speakers,which 
by  singing  through  them  produce  a  twangy  sound 
like  the  oboe;  two  combs,  and  the  cover  of  a  book 
for  a  drum — I  am  organist:  or  else  they  ask  me 
to  go  on  composing  something  for  the  band." 

It  could  not  but  happen  that  the  enthusiasm 

1  Ex-officio  Bishop  of  London.     This  was  Dean  Bloomfield. 


14  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

and  activity  of  the  young  chorister  should  attract 
just  the  sort  of  attention  which  was  destined  to 
prove  most  useful  to  him.  One  incident  of  his 
somewhat  precocious  ability  is  worth  relating. 
When  he  was  thirteen  he  came  home  from  the 
Chapel  Royal  for  his  holidays,  much  exercised  in 
mind  concerning  a  work  by  Sir  Frederick  Ouseley, 
entitled  "  The  Martyrdom  of  St.  Polycarp."  Sir 
Frederick  had  written  it  as  an  exercise  for  his 
degree  of  Doctor  of  Music  at  Oxford.  Arthur 
Sullivan  sang  the  solo  soprano  part  in  the  per- 
formance at  Oxford,  and  "  thought  there  never 
was  such  music."  As  soon  as  he  reached  home, 
he  said  to  his  father,  "  There  is  a  splendid  march 
in  '  The  Martyrdom  of  St.  Polycarp.'  You  really 
ought  to  get  it  for  the  band."  Mr.  Sullivan 
replied  that  he  could  do  nothing,  as  the  music  had 
not  been  published.  However,  the  boy  was  not 
to  be  overcome  by  a  difficulty  of  that  sort,  and 
beginning  work  early  one  morning,  by  night-time 
he  had  written  out  the  march  from  memory  in  full 
military  band  score,  and  it  was  played  with  great 
success  by  the  band  at  Sandhurst.  The  success 
of  this  experiment — a  wonderful  effort  of  memory 
for  a  boy  of  thirteen — reached  the  ears  of  Sir 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  15 

Frederick,  and  the  pleasure  which  he  expressed 
was  no  doubt  mixed  with  some  gratification  at 
what  was,  in  effect,  though  not  in  intention,  very 
practical  flattery. 

He  had  been  two  years  at  the  Chapel  Royal, 
when,  in  the  early  part  of  '56,  it  was  announced 
that  the  Mendelssohn  scholarship  would  be 
thrown  open  for  competition.  The  movement  in 
favour  of  this  form  of  memorial  to  Mendelssohn 
in  this  country  had  been  initiated  some  ten  years 
before,  with  the  result  that  a  committee  had  been 
convened  to  formulate  the  nation  in  London.  In 
order  to  raise  the  necessary  funds  it  had  been  de- 
cided to  take  advantage  of  the  generous  offer  of 
Madame  Jenny  Lind-Goldschmidt,  who  proffered 
herservices  at  the  performance  of  "Elijah,"  which 
she  gave  with  the  aid  of  the  Sacred  Harmonic 
Society  and  Mr.  Julius  Benedict,  and  which  took 
place  at  Exeter  Hall  on  December  15,  1848. 
The  result  of  the  performance  was  eminently 
satisfactory,  the  pecuniary  outcome  being  a  thou- 
sand pounds,  which  was  invested  and  formed  the 
nucleus  of  what  is  now  the  Mendelssohn  scholar- 
ship. The  original  plan  of  amalgamating  the 
London  and  Leipzig  projects  had  fallen  through, 


i6  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

and,  as  I  have  already  stated,  it  was  not  until  '56 
that  the  scholarship  was  actually  offered  for  com- 
petition. 

The  suggestion  that  Sullivan  should  compete 
would  seem  to  have  emanated  from  his  own 
parents,  for  in  one  of  his  letters  home,  dated  from 
Cheyne  Walk,  in  the  early  part  of  '56,  he  writes: 
"I  should  like  to  try  above  all  things  for  the 
Mendelssohn  scholarship,  but  you  had  better 
speak  to  Mr.  Helmore  first  about  it;"  while  in 
another,  dated  June  24,  he  states  that  "Saturday 
is  the  examination  day  for  the  Mendelssohn 
scholarship.  There  are  seventeen  candidates  for 
it,  all  clever  fellows,  so  Mr.  Porter  says,  so  that  I 
stand  a  poor  chance.  I  wish  you  would  come  up 
that  day.  Besides,  it  is  the  grand  rehearsal  of 
Jenny  Lind's  last  concert,  and  you  would  have  a 
chance  of  hearing  her." 

It  was  one  of  the  conditions  that  no  pupil 
under  fourteen  years  of  age  could  compete,  but 
luckily  for  him,  his  birthday  falling  on  May  13, 
he  just  escaped  disqualification  on  account  of  his 
extreme  youth  by  five  or  six  weeks!  When  it 
came  to  the  last  day  of  the  examination  it  was 
announced  that  the  scholarship  lay  between  the 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  17 

eldest  and  the  youngest  of  the  competitors.  The 
youngest  was  Arthur  Sullivan.  The  eldest  of 
the  competitors  was  Joseph  Barnby.  The  result 
being  a  tie  between  them,  it  was  decided  to  put 
them  both  through  a  severe  final  examination. 
At  the  close  of  that  long  summer's  day,  which 
must  have  been  a  trying  ordeal  for  both  of  them, 
the  judges  reserved  their  decision.  The  result, 
they  were  told,  would  be  communicated  by  letter 
to  the  successful  competitor. 

The  next  day  was  one  of  feverish  excitement 
for  at  least  one  of  the  "  Children  of  the  Chapel 
Royal,"  living  at  No.  6,  Cheyne  Walk,  Chelsea. 
It  was  not  a  prize  that  could  be  reckoned  out  and 
assessed  at  any  definite  monetary  value.  To 
young  Master  Sullivan  it  meant  a  continuance  of 
his  musical  education  under  the  most  favourable 
circumstances.  It  meant  also  that  the  winner  of 
the  first  Mendelssohn  scholarship  in  this  country 
would  receive  just  that  amount  of  publicity  that 
would  prove  of  almost  immediate  advantage.  It 
would  mean  the  friendly  attention  of  those  best 
able  to  help  him,  and,  not  least,  infinite  pleasure 
to  his  best  of  good  friends,  his  own  parents.  The 
letter  which  he  received  announcing  the  result, 


i8  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

and  the  first  paragraph  intimating  that  result  to 
the  pubHc  in  the  Illustrated  London  News,  were 
promptly  framed,  and  are  at  the  present  moment 
among  his  most  cherished  possessions.  Young 
as  he  was,  he  must  have  been  conscious  that  no 
subsequent  success  would  ever  afford  him  such  a 
keen  sense  of  pleasure.  It  was  his  real  start  in 
life,  and  it  would  be  his  own  fault  if  he  did  not 
make  the  best  use  of  it. 

During  the  time  of  his  stay  at  the  Chapels 
Royal  there  had  been  no  lack  of  interesting 
incidents.  With  the  rest  of  the  choir  he  was 
present  at  the  opening  of  the  Crystal  Palace  in 
1854  by  the  Queen  and  the  Prince  Consort,  an 
occasion  no  less  memorable  for  the  fact  that  it 
was  the  first  time  that  an  enormous  number  of 
singers  and  instrumentalists  were  gathered  to- 
gether upon  the  scale  afterwards  developed  by  the 
Handel  Festivals.  He  was  present  also,  as 
chorister,  at  the  baptismal  service  of  Princess 
Beatrice,  the  last-born  child  of  the  Queen. 

There  is  also  another  link  with  the  past  pro- 
vided by  the  mention  of  the  name  in  one  of  the 
boyish  letters  home  which  I  have  already  quoted 
— Jennie  Lind-Goldschmidt.    She  is,  of  course, 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  19 

no  more  than  a  name  to  this  generation.  Sir 
Arthur  tells  me  that  the  occasion  when  he  first 
heard  her  sing  was  the  greatest  event  of  his 
boyhood,  and  yet  remains  the  deepest  musical 
impression  of  his  life.  When  he  came  home 
from  that  concert  he  was  in  a  state  of  enchant- 
ment. For  two  or  three  hours  after  the  other 
boys  had  gone  off  to  bed  he  sat  on  the  staircase 
dreaming  and  thinking  about  it.  Sir  Arthur  tells 
me  that  she  was  altogether  the  greatest  singer  he 
has  ever  heard,  or — so  far  as  an  opinion  can  go — 
the  greatest  the  world  has  ever  seen.  Yet  the 
reason  for  the  enchantment  is  difficult  of  defini- 
tion. 

"  Her  voice,"  says  Sir  Arthur,  "  which,  as  an 
organ,  has  been  equalled  and  surpassed,  had  an 
individual  quality  about  it  totally  unlike  anything 
else  I  have  ever  heard.  She  sang  with  a  spirit- 
uality and  intensity  which  moved  one  strangely. 
Her  vocalisation,  phrasing,  and  interpretation 
were  absolutely  perfect,  but  her  power  over  one 
was  due  to  something  more  than  these  qualities. 
There  was  an  indefinable  something  in  her 
beautiful  voice  which  called  forth  the  high  tribute 
of  deep  emotion  and  real  tears  of  sympathy.   She 


20  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

was  a  rare  woman  and  a  great  artist.  I  remember 
one  occasion  when  she  was  quite  an  old  woman, 
she  came  to  visit  me.  It  chanced  that  in  the 
course  of  conversation  I  ran  my  fingers  over  the 
keys  of  the  pianoforte,  playing  a  little  song  of 
Mendelssohn,  and  I  assure  you  that  the  sound  of 
her  voice  had  the  same  magical  effect  upon  me — 
the  tears  came  to  one's  eyes — so  deep  and  true 
was  the  rare  spirituality  of  her  temperament." 

*'  Helmore,"  Sir  Arthur  tells  me,  "  was  enthusi- 
astic for  the  revival  of  old  church  music,  and  was 
at  the  head  of  the  movement  for  the  use  of 
Gregorian  music  in  the  church.  He  published 
two  works  which  are  of  permanent  value,  the 
'  Hymnal  Noted '  and  a  '  Psalter,'  both  of  which 
are  really  monuments  of  research.  The  words 
are  mostly  translations  by  the  Rev.  J.  M.  Niel, 
the  great  hymnologist.  I  assisted  in  the  work  a 
good  deal  in  harmonizing  tunes  during  the  time 
that  I  was  a  chorister  there.  The  knowledge  and 
experience  I  gained  in  this  way  in  regard  to  hymn 
tunes  assisted  me  materially  in  making  my 
big  collection  of  hymn  tunes  for  the  Society  for 
the  Promotion  of  Christian  Knowledge,  entitled 
'  Church  Hymns,'  and  for  this  collection  I  wrote 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  21 

a  great  many  tunes."  Many  of  which,  one  may 
add,  are  like  household  words  in  the  church. 

"  It  is  perhaps  a  curious  fact,"  Sir  Arthur  adds, 
"that  one  of  my  best-known  hymn  tunes  was 
written  as  a  result  of  a  quarrel.  The  quarrel  was 
between  the  proprietors  of  '  Hymns  Ancient  and 
Modern '  and  the  firm  of  Novello  who  printed  it, 
and  who  then  gave  way  to  Messrs.  Clowes,  who 
still  print  it.  Novello's  then  proceeded  to  compile 
a  collection  of  hymns,  and  for  that  Hymnary  I 
wrote  'Onward,  Christian  Soldiers,'  which,  you 
see,  was  thus  the  indirect  outcome  of  a  quarrel." 

He  remained  for  some  time  at  the  Chapel 
Royal,  and  did  his  work  at  the  Academy  con- 
currently. His  masters  there  were  Sterndale 
Bennett  and  Arthur  O'Leary  for  the  pianoforte, 
and  John  Goss  for  harmony  and  composition. 
He  has  ever  been  an  exceedingly  hard  worker, 
and  that  he  did  not  belie  himself  upon  this  occasion 
was  shown  by  the  fact  that,  in  consideration  of 
the  progress  he  had  made,  the  committee  awarded 
him  an  extension  of  the  scholarship  for  two  years 
in  succession,  although  it  was  not  until  the  end  of 
the  first  year  that  his  voice  "broke"  and  he  left 
London  for  Leipzig.     This  was  in  the  June  of 


22  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

'57  (aetat.  15),  and  his  work   and    experience  in 
Leipzig  must  be  reserved  for  the  next  chapter. 

They  were  happy  days,  and  among  the  children 
of  the  Chapels  Royal  it  maybe  doubted  if  any  of 
the  boys  enjoyed  the  work  more  than  young 
Arthur  Sullivan.  He  had  been  there  three  years, 
had  become  "first  boy,"  had  written  two  or  three 
anthems,  one  of  which  had  been  sung  in  the 
Chapel,  and  for  which  he  had  received  his  first 
earnings — ten  shillings;  had  alternated  his  spare 
time  between  the  Catch  Club  and  the  Cricket 
Club,  and  the  wonderful  Choir  "  band,"  of  which 
he  had  been  the  conductor,  organist,  and  com- 
poser, and  the  bright-eyed,  eager  boy,  with  his 
assiduous  attention  to  duty,  had  made  many 
friends.  He  left  the  Chapel  and  the  Academy 
well  equipped  in  the  rudiments  of  his  profession. 
Nor  was  this  all,  for,  better  still,  he  had  acquired 
much  the  same  sort  of  practical  knowledge  of  the 
voice  and  the  requirements  of  choral  music  that 
he  had  already  gained  in  regard  to  instrumental 
music  from  the  military  band  which  his  father 
controlled  at  Sandhurst.  So  we  find  that  up  to 
this  point  he  had  gained  not  the  least  valuable 
part  of  his  education — the  personal  knowledge  of 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  23 

each  instrument  and  each  voice,  without  which,  it 
goes  without  saying,  and  may  well  be  emphasised 
here,  no  man  can  be  considered  qualified  for  the 
post  of  conductor,  nor  hope  to  do  effective  work 
as  a  composer.  It  was  a  knowledge  which  I 
think  the  most  adverse  critic  will  not  deny  has 
proved  fruitful,  and  it  is  knowledge  which,  added 
to  his  rare  melodic  faculty,  has  enabled  him  to  do 
work  which  has  not  only  achieved  unique  popu- 
larity, but  will  also  help  to  secure  for  the  greater 
part  of  his  composition  the  permanent  interest  of 
posterity. 


CHAPTER  II 

AT  LEIPZIG 

(1858-1861) 

IT  was  in  the  autumn  of  1858  that  he  left 
London  for  Leipzig.  He  carried  with  him 
letters  of  introduction  which  would  find  him 
very  acceptable  friends,  and  the  fact  that  he  was 
the  first  Mendelssohn  scholar  would  be  sure  to 
gain  him  some  little  attention  in  the  Conserva- 
torium  at  Leipzig,  but,  best  of  all,  he  brought  no 
prejudices  with  him.  He  worked  hard  and  formed 
opinions  and  came  to  some  definite  conclusions, 
but,  as  one  would  expect,  the  sixteen-year-old  lad 
was  unprejudiced  and  receptive.  On  this  side  of 
the  water,  in  those  days,  there  was  no  god  but 
Mendelssohn^  and  the  lighter  form  of  music  in- 
dulged in  as  an  alternative  was  almost  too  banal 
for  description.  Apart  from  appreciation  of  Men- 
delssohn, the  taste  of    the    musical    public  in 

24 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  25 

England  was  at  a  low  ebb,  vapid  pianoforte 
pieces,  insipid  ballads,  and  songs  characterised  by 
nothing  better  than  blatant  vulgarity  sufficed  to 
keep  the  more  intelligent  folk  away  from  the 
concert  room,  and,  unfortunately,  by  the  will  of 
the  majority,  similar  stuff  was  made  to  serve  as 
the  staple  after-dinner  refreshment.  At  Leipzig 
there  was,  if  anything,  rather  a  prejudice  against 
Mendelssohn,  in  the  shape  of  a  reaction  against 
the  notion  that  if  the  out-and-out  admirers  of 
Mendelssohn  were  right,  then  the  admirers  of  any 
other  composer  must  be  wrong.  Schumann,  at 
that  time  unknown  in  England,  was  enjoying  a 
great  vogue  in  Germany.  Schubert,  too,  had 
*'come  to  his  own,"  and  the  admirers  of  Wagner 
were  giving  vent  to  that  enthusiasm  which,  in 
its  later  developments,  has  done  that  great 
master  the  ill  service  of  the  suggestion  that  to  be 
unable  to  regard  everything  he  has  written  as 
being  on  the  same  plane  of  excellence  is  to  argue 
that  one  is  without  education,  or  that  one  has  a 
weakness  for  indulging  in  heresy  At  any  rate, 
up  to  the  time  of  which  I  am  writing,  the  work 
of  Wagner,  Schumann,  and  Schubert  had  been 
ignored  in  this  country.    Not  the  least  important 


26  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

part  of  the  education  he  received  during  his  two- 
and-a-half  years  in  Leipzig  was  this  breadth  of 
appreciation  and  knowledge  of  even  more  impor- 
tance than  the  practical  tuition  he  received  at  the 
admirably  managed  Conservatorium. 

Here  he  had  for  masters  Moscheles  and  Plaidy 
for  the  pianoforte,  Hauptmann  for  counterpoint 
and  fugue,  Julius  Rietz  for  composition,  and 
Ferdinand  David  for  orchestral  playing  and  con- 
ducting. He  was  extremely  fortunate  in  his 
masters.  Rietz  was  an  excellent  conductor,  who 
never  allowed  his  own  strong  personal  prejudices 
to  stand  in  the  way  of  a  good  performance,  while 
Plaidy's  instruction  (pianoforte)  was  eagerly 
sought  after  from  all  parts  of  the  world,  for  he 
had  a  remarkable  gift  for  imparting  technical 
power. 

"Amongst  my  fellow-students  at  Leipzig  who 
afterwards  distinguished  themselves,"  Sir  Arthur 
tells  me,  "  might  be  mentioned  John  Francis 
Barnett,  Franklin  Taylor,  Professor  Ernest 
Rudolph,  and  Greig,  the  celebrated  composer. 
His  younger  brother  was  also  there,  and  it  is  cu- 
rious to  remember  that  he  was  thought  to  be  very 
much  more  gifted  and  more  likely  to  achieve 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  27 

celebrity  in  the  world  than  his  elder  brother;  but 
the  younger  brother  has  done  nothing  since.  To 
continue  the  list  of  my  fellow-students,  there  was 
Carl  Rosa,  Dan  Renter,  the  late  Walter  Bach, 
and  many  who  are  better  known  in  Germany  than 
here. 

"At  that  time  Leipzig  was  a  most  interesting 
old  town,  with  some  of  the  most  picturesque 
German  architecture  in  the  world,  of  which  noth- 
ing now  remains  but  a  few  old  houses  in  the 
market-place 

"  In  i860,  whilst  I  was  there,  the  wonderful 
hailstorm  occurred.  It  lasted  less  than  ten 
minutes,  but  it  broke  every  window  in  the  town 
that  looked  to  the  west,  and  it  was  a  curious  thing 
that,  in  the  post-office,  which  faced  west,  every 
pane  of  glass  looked  as  if  it  had  been  clean  cut  by 
the  glazier.  The  hailstones  were  about  the  size 
of  a  bantam's  egg,  and  many  of  them  were  of  a 
most  beautiful  pattern  and  shape.  A  good  many 
cattle,  but,  luckily,  no  human  beings,  were  killed, 
although  a  number  of  people  were  badly  injured. 
The  stones  were  swept  up  at  the  sides  of  the 
streets,  and  a  few  days  afterwards  the  King  of 
Saxony  came  over  to  look  at  them.     It  was  cer- 


28  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

tainly  the  most  curious  thing  I  have  ever  wit- 
nessed in  Europe." 

The  story  of  young  Sullivan's  work  and  experi- 
ence at  Leipzig  can  best  be  told  from  the  letters 
which  he  wrote  during  that  period. 

In  September  of  '58  he  writes  to  his  father  to 
tell  him  that  he  is  now  "  safely  housed  two  floors 
high,  and  that  the  bed-sitting  room  contains  a 
grand  piano."  He  has  already  had  several  plea- 
sant walks  with  Moscheles  and  David. 

"  The  first  of  the  twenty  subscription  concerts 
will  begin  next  week,  but  I  shall  not  go  to  the 
first  two,  as  they  are  on  Sunday." 

The  first  question  Sir  George  Smart  put  to  him 
on  his  return  from  Leipzig  was,  "  Did  you  go  to 
any  concerts  on  a  Sunday?"  and  was  delighted  to 
have  a  reply  in  the  negative. 

"  I  am  obliged  to  work  tremendously  hard  here. 
No  sooner  is  one  master  dispatched  than  I  rush 
home  to  prepare  for  another.  In  fact,  to  tell  the 
truth,  the  great  fault  of  this  institution  is  that  there 
are  too  many  lessons — not  enough  time  given  to 
the  student  to  work  at  home."  The  same  letter 
(dated  November)  contains  an  amused  reference 
to  the  influence  of  what  he  has  so  far  seen  and 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  29 

heard  around  him.  "  I  had  filled  two  sheets  of 
paper  with  a  letter  to  Mr.  Helmore  the  other  day, 
but  tore  it  up  again,  as  it  contained  heresy,  as 
Captain  Ottley  would  call  it." 

There  are  two  letters  to  his  brother  Frederic  to 
congratulate  him  on  his  birthdays.  In  December 
of  '58  his  brother  Frederic  was  twenty-one,  and 
Arthur  was  six  months  over  sixteen. 

"I  shall  treat  myself  to  a  '  Halbe-Flasche*  of 
Hocheimer  on  Saturday  to  drink  your  health  in, 
old  chap,  and  for  which  you  can  pay  me  in  your 
next  letter.  This  is  the  best  time  to  be  in  Ger- 
many. Every  one  gives  presents  to  each  other. 
It  is  an  old  Christmas  custom,  and  all  is  mirth  and 
jollity.  I  walk  perhaps  into  the  Augustus  Platz, 
and  the  whole  square  is  filled  with  Christmas  trees 
of  all  sizes  for  the  inspection  of  the  buyer.  Every 
one  has  a  tree,  even  the  poorest  in  the  town.  It 
is  not  Christmas  without  it.  Walking  a  little  fur- 
ther up  the  Grimmasche  Strasse  I  am  attracted 
by  shops  filled  with  the  most  exquisite  bonbons 
and  sweetmeats  of  all  shapes  and  patternsf 
Houses,  trees,  animals,  human  beings,  ham,  sau- 
sages, and  all  kinds  of  cunning  devices,  cut  out  in 
the  most  beautiful  manner,  and  in  all  colours,  from 


30  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

sugar  and  all  of  it  eatable.    These  are  put  on  the 
trees." 

In  the  letter  to  his  brother  in  the  same  month 
of  the  following  year  ('59)  he  alludes  jocularly  to 
his  student  importance:  "  I  was  writing  a  little 
piece  for  the  violoncello  in  honour  of  your  twenty- 
second  birthday,  but  was  obliged  to  give  it  up  on 
account  of  my  important  public  duties!  in  connec- 
tion with  the  Conservatoire  festivities.  I  have 
been  unanimously  elected  President  of  our  Music 
Committee.  The  operetta — one  of  Reinicke's — 
is  only  written  for  pianoforte  accompaniment,  and 
as  that  is  not  strong  enough,  I  am  obliged  to 
arrange  a  great  part  of  it  for  string  instruments, 
and,  besides  that,  I  have  to  conduct  the  whole 
piece.  I  anticipate  great  fun  at  the  rehearsals! 
The  dresses  have  been  lent  us  by  the  theatre. 
My  orchestra  consists  of  three  first  violins,  two 
second,  one  'cello,  and  one  contrabass,  with  the 
grand  piano,  and  perhaps  I  shall  have  two  or 
three  more  violins  and  another  'cello.  We  have 
eighteen  in  the  chorus  and  six  solo  singers,  so  I 
shall  have  enough  to  do  to  keep  them  all  to- 
gether." It  was  a  favourite  trick  of  his  to  append 
to  his  signature  some  sort  of  title.     This  time  he 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  31 

proudly  adds,  "  Conductor  of  the  Royal  Opera  at 
Leipzig!" 

Writing  in  the  previous  September  to  his 
father  he  remarks,  "I  have  written  a  little 
romance  for  four  stringed  instruments  which  I 
will  send  you  over  to  play,  if  you  promise  to 
observe  the  pianos,  fortes,  and  staccatos  in  a 
marked  manner,  as  the  thing  loses  its  effect 
without  them. 

"  We  had  what  they  call  a  Landpartie  the 
other  day — that  is,  all  the  students  of  the 
Conservatorium,  accompanied  by  the  directors, 
masters,  and  various  visitors,  walk  out  to  a  little 
village,  eat  and  drink  in  the  Gasthof,  or  an  inn, 
and  then  amuse  themselves  in  a  free-and-easy 
manner.  I,  with  my  usual  luck,  happened  to  be 
elected  on  the  Committee  of  Arrangements, 
thereby  losing  three  days'  work,  and  finding 
myself  minus  two-and-a-half  thalers  at  the  end. 
How  we  four  wretched  creatures  worked  and 
slaved  those  three  days!  First  day  concocting 
and  writing  notices  to  be  hung  up  in  the  hall, 
running  about  the  town  buying  ingredients  for 
'  punch,'  flowers  for  the  ladies,  decorations  for 
the  salon,  &c.    Another  committee  meeting  at 


32  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

eight  next  morning.  Rode  over  to  Wahren  to 
tell  'mine  host'  that  eighty  people  were  coming 
to  dine  with  him  the  next  day,  and  that  he  must 
be  provided.  Then  we  decorated  the  room  in 
the  most  brilliant  manner,  each  in  his  shirt 
sleeves,  and  a  pot  of  'Baieresches  Beer'  before 
him — Germans  can  do  nothing  without  beer! 
That  done,  back  again  to  Leipzig,  went  round  to 
invite  the  masters,  directors,  &c.,  according  to 
etiquette.  Next  day  committee  meeting  at  eight, 
rushed  two  miles  out  of  town  to  buy  the  fireworks 
and  illuminated  lanterns.  Brought  them  home  in 
triumph,  went  home,  dressed  and  ate,  and  went 
back  to  the  Conservatorium  before  two,  in  time 
to  receive  the  people.  At  Wahren  they  drank 
coffee  and  played  games  in  the  meadow,  danced, 
ate  supper,  saw  the  fireworks,  and  finally  drank 
an  immense  quantity  of  punch.  Had  you  come 
in  at  about  a  quarter  past  ten  you  would  have 
seen  Albrecht  and  me  with  two  gigantic  bowls 
ladling  it  out  to  the  company." 

30th  March,  i860.— "Tell  Jack  [his  brother] 
I  will  sell  him  the  copyright  of  the  Overture  for 
twenty  pounds,  or  you  shall  have  it  for  the  same 
price  for  the  great band!    What  a  swindle 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  33 

that  thing  is!  Cheating  the  public  to  go  to  Exeter 
Hall  in  order  to  hear  a  set  of  wretched  muffs 
blowing  themselves  to  pieces  and  labouring  under 
the  delusion  that  they  are  entertaining  the  public. 
But  I  must  say  that  you  have  shown  great 
judgment  in  discarding  bassoons,  for  what  earthly 
use  are  they  amidst  the  noise  of  trumpets,  trom- 
bones, euphoniums,  &c.?  Besides,  the  bassoon 
is  a  purely  orchestral  instrument,  and,  in  my 
opinion,  utterly  out  of  place  in  a  military  band. 
The  althorn,  on  the  contrary,  although  of  a  very 
sweet  and  charming  tone,  tells  much  more,  mixes 
better  with  the  other  instruments,  and  is  capable 
of  quite  the  same,  if  not  more,  execution.  Your 
selections  seem  to  be  very  judicious,  but  of  course 
I  cannot  speak  on  that  subject  as  you  are  far  in 
advance  of  me  in  such  things.  I  must  get  you  to 
teach  me  more  about  military  instrumentation 
when  I  comeback.  .  .  .  Most  of  the  bands  I  have 
seen  in  Germany  seem  to  be  all  brass.  I  must 
confess  they  do  play  splendidly,  and  it  has  a 
most  glorious  effect.  You  cannot  tell  how  much 
superior  it  sounds  to  ours  in  England." 

June  4,  1859,  he  writes  to  his  father:     "  I  have 
been  here  eight  months,  an  immense  advantage  to 


34  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

me" — although  "it  is  only  now"  that  the  improve- 
ment was  manifesting  itself  in  young  Sullivan — 
"  for,  of  course,  I  had  to  work  back  again  to  this 
system,  besides  having  to  struggle  against  the 
difficulties  of  the  language,  for  I  lost  half  the 
benefit  of  my  former  lessons  through  not  under- 
standing what  was  said.  .  .  .  You  will  be  pleased 
to  hear  that  I  have  made  my  first  public  appear- 
ance as  a  player,  as  the  enclosed  programme  will 
show  you,  though  I  certainly  had  not  much  cause 
to  be  nervous,  there  being  four  of  us  playing 
together.  I  do  not  much  mind  playing  in  public 
now,  as  I  have  got  over  my  nervousness,  and  for 
which  I  may  thank  the  Abend  Unterhaltung. 
My  quartette  was  played  in  the  Abend  Unter- 
haltung a  fortnight  or  so  ago,  and  went  capitally. 
I  mean  it  played  well.  I  was  congratulated  by 
the  director  and  professors  afterwards.  They 
wanted  it  performed  in  the  Priifung  (public  ex- 
amination), but  Mr.  Rietz  would  not  have  it,  for 
reasons  which  were  quite  proper  ;  besides,  I  have 
no  doubt  he  thought  I  should  become  idle  after 
it,  as  is  very  often  the  case  with  them  here. 

"This  has  been  a  very  gay  week  for  Leipzig 
in  consequence   of  the  great  '  Tonkiistler-Ver- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  35 

sammlung,'  or  meeting  of  musical  artists,  got  up 
principally  by  the 'Future  Music'  people.  Through 
it  I  have  formed  the  acquaintance  of  Liszt,  who 
has  been  the  '  Lion.'  My  first  introduction  to 
him  was  last  Tuesday,  when  Mr.  David  gave  a 
grand  musical  matinee  to  which  he  invited  me. 
Liszt,  Von  Bulow  (Prussian  court  pianist)  .  .  . 
and  many  other  German  celebrities,  musical  and 
non-musical,  were  there.  In  the  evening  when 
nearly  every  one  was  gone,  Liszt,  David,  Bronsart, 
and  I  had  a  quiet  game  of  whist  together,  and  I 
walked  home  with  Liszt  in  the  evening.  .  .  . 
The  next  evening  a  grand  concert  in  the  theatre, 
Liszt  conducting.  .  .  .  Liszt  is  a  very  amiable 
man,  despite  his  eccentricities,  which  are  many. 
What  a  wonderful  player  he  is!  Such  power  and 
at  the  same  time  such  delicacy  and  lightness. 
.  .  .  We  have  had  40,000  Austrians  passing 
through  here  this  last  fortnight,  on  their  way  to 
the  war.  They  are  not  bad-looking  men.  The 
general  feeling  of  hatred  against  Napoleon 
throughout  Germany  is  tremendous.  The  papers 
are  daily  filled  with  the  most  raving  animosities 
against  him,  and  no  effort  is  made  to  stop  them. 
I  do  not  think  that  it  is  possible  for  Germany  to 


36  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

help  mixing  up  in  the  war.  There  are  now 
i6,o(X)  men  out  of  work  in  Leipzig  alone,  and  if 
things  do  not  mend  soon  there  will  be  revolutions 
everywhere. 

"  I  had  a  letter  from  Sir  F.  Ouseley  the  other 
day.  He  writes  so  kindly,  and  wants  to  know  if 
I  will  write  him  another  anthem  for  his  book,  but 
the  words  he  has  sent  me  are  so  unmusical  that  I 
cannot  set  them.  .  .  .  Tell  Fred,  with  my  love, 
that  he  is  a  brick,  and  that  I  will  write  him  some- 
thing for  his  violoncello." 

June  5,  i860. — "  I  enclose  you  a  programme  of 
our  last  Priifung.  You  will,  doubtless,  on  looking 
over  it,  recognise  one  of  the  names.  Translated, 
the  thing  stands  as  follows:  Overture  to  T.Moore's 
poem,  *  The  Feast  of  Roses,'  from  Lalla  Rookh 
(E  Major),  composed  by  A.  S.  from  London 
(conducted  by  the  composer).  '  The  Feast  of 
Roses ,  is  the  German  name  for  the  '  Light  of  the 
Harem.'  It  was  such  fun  standing  up  there  and 
conducting  that  large  orchestra!  I  can  fancy 
mother  saying,  '  Bless  his  little  heart!  how  it  must 
have  beaten! '  But  his  little  heart  did  not  beat  at 
all.  I  wasn't  in  the  least  nervous,  only  in  one 
part  where  the  drum  would  come  in  wrong  at  the 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  37 

rehearsal,  but  he  did  it  all  right  in  the  evening. 
I  was  called  forward  three  times  at  the  end  and 
most  enthusiastically  cheered.  I  shot  the  bird,  as 
Mr.  Schleinitz  said — i.e.,  had  the  greatest  success 
in  the  whole  Priifung.  The  newspapers  have 
also  treated  me  very  favourably,  much  better  than 
I  expected,  for  the  Overture  being  written  in 
Mendelssohn  style,  and  there  being  such  a  clique 
against  Mendelssohn,  I  thought  they  would  have 
treated  me  roughly.  The  Leipzig  Jotirnal  says, 
'  With  respect  to  the  compositions,  we  were 
gratified  at  finding  in  the  youthful  Sullivan  a 
talent  which  we  many  venture  to  say,  by  the  aid 
of  active  and  continued  perseverance,  gives  prom- 
ise of  a  favourable  future.  His  Overture  was 
certainly  a  little  spun  out,  but,  nevertheless,  suc- 
cessful by  the  aid  of  well-selected  materials,  in 
mastering  the  expression  of  the  one  definite  aim 
held  in  view.'  The  General  Anzeiger  says, 
speaking  of  the  applause  which  followed  Fisher's 
'  Quartette,'  '  Still  more  was  obtained  by  Herr 
Sullivan  in  the  second  part  for  his  Overture, 
which  was  conducted  by  himself,  and  which, 
striving  towards  a  new  direction,  transported 
us   into   the   Persian   plains  of    Moore's  lovely 


3 


'^7'vm 


38  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

poem,  and  gives  us  great  hopes  for  the  young 
composer." 

August  22,  1859. — "Where  do  you  think  I 
have  been?  To  no  less  a  place  than  Schandau. 
You  sent  me  five  thai.,  I  saved  up  five,  and  my 
landlady,  who  wanted  to  get  me  out  of  the  house 
in  order  to  clean  it,  lent  me  five.  It  was  too  hot 
to  live  in  Leipzig.  Fancy  having  113  Fah.  in 
the  shade.  .  .  .  Well,  I  set  out  at  nine  in  the 
morning  for  Dresden  and  got  there  about  twelve. 
But,  alas!  I  had  chosen  an  unfortunate  day. 
There  was  no  opera  that  night,  the  picture  gallery 
was  closed,  and  all  that  I  could  do  was  to  walk 
about  the  town  till  the  boat  for  Schandau  went. 
I  was  altogether  delighted  with  Dresden:  it  is  a 
beautiful  town,  and  well  deserves  the  name  of  the 
'  German  Florence.'  The  streets  are  clean  and 
the  houses  fine  and  well  built,  and  the  river  Elbe 
so  clear  that  you  can  almost  see  the  bottom  of 
it.  .  .  .  At  two  I  took  my  place  in  the  steamer, 
and  we  jogged  quietly  up  the  river.  It  was  a 
beautiful  day  and  we  were  enabled  to  see  all  the 
lovely  scenery  as  we  passed,  for,  by  taking 
the  river,  you  go  through  the  whole  of  the 
Saxon-Switzerland.    The  first  part  consists  prin- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  39 

cipally  of  woods  and  hills  sloping  down  to  the 
river,  interspersed  with  cottages,  all  built  in  the 
Swiss  style.  But  when  within  about  five  or  six 
miles  of  Schandau  it  grows  grander  and  grander, 
immense  rocks,  some  with  foliage,  rising  one 
above  the  other  to  a  tremendous  height.    .    .   . 

"  I  put  up  at  the  Bath  Hotel,  as  being  the  best 
and  most  reasonable.  What  a  glorious  week  we 
had!  We  made  excursions  into  all  the  neigh- 
bouring '  Lions.'  .  .  .  Payne,  a  young  English- 
man studying  in  the  Conservatorium,  and  staying 
with  me  in  the  hotel,  came  up  to  me  and  said, 
'Sullivan  I  should  like  to  see  our  bills;  we  have 
been  here  just  a  week,  and  I  don't  think  we  can 
hold  out  any  longer.'  '  I  have  just  told  the  waiter 
to  bring  them,'  I  said,  '  for  I  am  getting  anxious 
too.'  The  bills  were  brought,  and  after  paying 
mine  I  found  I  had  just  a  thaler  left!  *  How  am 
I  to  get  back  to  Leipzig?'  was  naturally  the 
question  that  came  to  my  head.  Payne  had  five 
thalers  left,  and  we  agreed  to  start  off  the  next 
morning  at  six  o'clock  and  make  a  joint-stock 
purse!  With  six  thalers  we  found  we  could  come 
through  very  well.  All  went  off  very  jollily  till 
we  came  to  the  pier  at  Dresden,  when  Payne, 


40  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

who  was  cashier,  discovered  that  he  had  lost  both 
boat  tickets,  when,  of  course,  we  had  to  pay  again. 
'  Pleasant,'  thought  I.  '  This  is  the  height  of 
human  enjoyment,'  said  Payne,  with  a  melan- 
choly attempt  at  a  smile.  We  hadn't  enough  to 
pay  for  the  train  to  Leipzig.  So  we  stood  by  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  looking  at  the  theatre 
and  the  Royal  Palace,  and  wondering  if  the  King 
knew  we  hadn't  money  enough  whether  he  would 
send  us  out  any.  It  was  one  o'clock,  and  in 
another  hour  the  train  would  start  for  Leipzig. 
A  thump  on  the  shoulder,  and  '  Hullo,  old 
fellow! '  made  me  look  away  from  the  Palace, 
and  there,  to  my  joy,  stood  W.,  who,  with  his 
mother,  was  just  going  on  to  Schandau.  To 
explain  the  state  of  the  case  and  borrow  two 
thalers  was  the  work  of  a  few  seconds.  That 
fellow  always  comes  everywhere  at  the  right 
moment.  He  has  the  best  and  kindest  heart  in 
the  world,  and  is  the  confidential  friend  and 
adviser  of  all  the  English  in  Leipzig.  Well,  we 
got  back  to  Leipzig  at  last,  after  having  bullied 
all  the  porters,  guards,  and  railway  officials  on 
the  line,  who  naturally  thought  us  young  '  Milords' 
with  hundreds  of  pounds  in  our  pockets  instead 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  41 

of  a  few  groschens.  ...  I  was  in  high  good 
humour  to-day,  for  the  sight  of  that  thaler  has 
done  me  good.  I  shall  immediately  go  to  the 
orchestra  lesson,  conduct  the  symphony,  which  I 
haven't  done  for  two  or  three  weeks,  and  bully  the 
band,  in  tolerably  bad  German,  for  hurrying  so. 
Dr.  David  laughs  at  me  and  says  I  shall  make  a 
capital  conductor."  Referring  to  his  brother: 
*'  Captain  Ottley  saw  him  sawing  away  with  a  zeal 
that  would  have  done  honor  to  half  a-dozen 
Lindleys  put  together  at  the  Handel  Festival.  I 
do  wish  he  could  come  over  here  for  a  week  or 
two." 

October  30,  1859. — "  My  quartette  was  per- 
formed again  last  Friday  in  the  Abend  Unter- 
haltung.  Herr  Veit,  an  amateur  of  talent  and 
celebrity,  having  had  a  symphony  performed  in 
the  Gervandhaus  Concert,  honoured  us  the  next 
evening  with  his  presence  in  the  Couservatorium, 
and  the  directors  wishing  him  to  hear  some 
pupil's  composition  selected  my  quartette.  When 
it  was  over  Veit  called  me  to  him,  shook  hands 
with  me,  and  practically  repeated  what  Spohr  said 
to  me:  'So  young,  and  yet  so  far  advanced  in 
art.'" 


42  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

September  i860. — "  How  shall  I  thank  you 
sufficiently,  my  dearest  father,  for  the  opportunity 
you  have  given  me  of  continuing  my  studies  here  ? 
I  am  indeed  very  grateful,  and  will  work  very 
hard  in  order  that  you  may  soon  see  that  all  your 
sacrifices  (which  I  know  you  make)  have  not  been 
to  no  purpose,  and  I  will  try  to  make  the  end  of 
your  days  happy  and  comfortable.  I  had  given 
up  all  idea  of  studying  longer,  and,  indeed,  was 
making  preparations  for  my  journey  home. 
Therefore  the  surprise  was  greater  for  me." 

October  28,  i860. — "The  director  has  ex- 
empted me  from  paying  for  the  Conservatorium 
during  the  next  six  months  I  am  going  to  stay 
here.  When  I  went  up  to  thank  him  for  it  he 
said,  '  Oh,  yes,  we  will  let  that  be  entirely.  You 
are  a  splendid  fellow  (parchtiger  Kerl)  and  very 
useful.  We  all  like  you  so  much  that  we  can't  let 
you  go: '  is  it  not  very  kind  of  him ? " 

Writing  to  his  brother  Christmas  '60 :  *'  We 
were  wishing  for  you  to  come  over  and  give  us 
your  valuable  assistance  here  a  short  time  ago. 
We  had  a  grand  nigger  performance  at  Mrs. 
Barnett's  and  all  the  English  and  Americans  in 
the  Conservatorium  invited  to  witness  it.    The 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  43 

performers  were  four  in  number.  Taylor,^  banjo 
(played  upon  my  tenor)]  Barnett,^  bones,  deficiency 
supplied  by  castagnets;  Wheat,  violin,  and  myself, 
tambourine.  We  composed  the  whole  entertain- 
ment amongst  us,  and  a  very  good  one  it  was  too; 
most  of  the  audience  had  never  seen  anything  of 
the  kind  before,  and  the  consequence  was  they 
were  most  of  them  ill  with  laughing.  In  the  same 
sort  of  case,  in  fact,  that  father  and  I  were  in  after 
we  had  seen  Christy's.  In  our  rehearsals,  when  we 
were  at  a  standstill  or  in  a  difficulty,  the  general 
exclamation  was,  *  Now,  if  Sullivan's  brother  were 
here  he'd  be  the  fellow.  Yes,  write  to  Fred 
Sullivan  and  tell  him  to  give  us  a  few  hints,'  so 
you  see  your  reputation  is  firmly  established  in 
Leipzig. 

October  31,  i860:  "Mother,  my  great  hobby 
is  still  conducting.  I  have  been  told  by  many  of 
the  masters  here  that  I  was  born  to  be  a  conductor 
and  consequently  have  been  educating  myself  to 
a  high  degree  in  that  branch  of  the  art.  If  I  can 
only  once  obtain  an  opportunity  to  show  what  I 
can  do  in  that  way  I  feel  confident  of  my  success 

1  Professor  Franklin  Taylor. 
"  John  Francis  Bamett. 


44  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

afterwards.  Do  not  mistake  this  for  conceit.  .  .  . 
but  I  am  getting  of  an  age  now  when  I  shall  be 
obliged  to  have  confidence  in  myself  and  my  own 
resources.  I  often  try  to  think  what  would  have 
become  of  me  had  I  never  come  to  Germany.  In 
England  there  was  very  little  more  for  m^e  to 
learn.  I  had  heard  and  knew  well  almost  all  the 
small  stock  of  music  which  is  ever  performed  in 
London  (and  it  is  very  little  compared  to  what  one 
hears  here).  I  should  have  made  very  little  im- 
provement in  pianoforte  playing,  whereas  now 
thanks  to  Messrs.  Moscheles  and  Plaidy,  I  am  a 
tolerably  decent  player.  .  .  .  Besides  increasing 
and  maturing  my  judgment  of  music  it  has  taught 
me  how  good  works  ought  to  be  done.  They 
have  no  idea  in  England  of  making  the  orchestras 
play  with  that  degree  of  light  and  shade  to  which 
they  have  attained  here,  and  that  is  what  I  aim  at 
— to  bring  the  English  orchestra  to  the  same  per- 
fection as  the  Continental  ones,  and  to  even  still 
greater,  for  the  power  and  tone  of  ours  are  much 
greater  than  the  foreign." 

Writing  of  the  English  attitude  at  that  time 
towards  new  work:  "If  something  does  not 
please  them  (tickle  their  ears)  the  first  time  they 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  45 

hear  it  they  throw  it  aside  and  will  not  have  any- 
thing more  to  do  with  it,  forgetting  that  really 
good  music  is  seldom  appreciated  by  one  the  first 
time  of  hearing,  but  that  it  grows  on  one  and  one 
sees  its  beauties  gradually.  Take  Beethoven,  for 
instance.  His  fifth  symphony  was  poohpooh'd 
and  laughed  at  when  it  was  first  tried  at  the 
Philharmonic;  Carl  M.  von  Weber  said  of  his 
eighth  (or  seventh)  that  the  composer  was  fit  for 
the  madhouse.  The  Choral  Symphony  is  only 
just  now  beginning  to  be  understood  m  England. 
And  yet  what  do  we  think  of  Beethoven  now? 
Suppose  they  had  cast  him  aside,  as  they  do 
Schumann  (the  most  popular  German  composer), 
Schubert,  Gade,  and  other  less  distinguished 
composers.  Look  at  the  programme  for  to- 
morrow night's  concert.  .  .  .  Fancy  seeing 
Schumann  and  Wagner  in  the  same  programme 
in  England.  The  time  will  come  yet  I  hope.  .  .  . 
The  fact  is  I  am  letting  out  now  all  the  rage 
which  has  been  concentrated  in  me  ever  since  I 
began  reading  that  wretched  Musical  World.  It 
is  my  opinion  that  music  as  an  art  in  England 
will  go  to  the  devil  very  soon  if  some  few  enthu- 
siastic, practical,  and  capable  young  educated 


46  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

musicians  do  not  take  it  in  hand.  I  get  so  savage 
sometimes  when  in  company  here  and  talking  to 
great  artists  who  have  been  to  England  at  the 
sneering  way  in  which  they  talk  of  '  England's 
art,'  English  taste.  .  .  .  and  yet  I  ought  not  to 
be  angry  with  them,  for  I  feel  that  they  are  quite 
right.  However,  hope  and  persevere  is  my 
motto." 

November  26,  i860. — Writing  to  his  father  on 
various  musical  matters,  more  particularly  with 
regard  to  military  band  music,  he  goes  on  to  say: 
"  I  have  given  up  the  symphony.  I  finished  the 
first  movement,  but  did  not  like  it  when  it  was 
done,  for  whatever  way  I  turned  the  second 
subject  it  always  sounded  like  the  Quintette  of 
Schumann,  a  piece  you  do  not  know,  of  course, 
being  an  Englishman.  I  cannot  understand  why 
the  critics,  and,  in  consequence,  musicians  them- 
selves, should  be  so  prejudiced  against  that  un- 
fortunate composer.  At  the  very  name  of 
Schumann  an  English  musician  draws  back 
alarmed,  shrugs  his  shoulders,  and  mutters  a  few 
words  about  Zukunftsmusik,  Weimar,  &c., 
and  doubtless  with  fine  judgment  will  point  out 
the  marked  difference  between  Schumann  and 


ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

IX     1B57,    AETAT.     15.         L.£:iPZl(^     POHTICAJT. 


HISLIFESTORY  47 

Handel!  Yet,  if  you  ask  that  man  to  tell  you 
conscientiously  if  he  ever  heard  a  note  of 
Schumann's  music,  he  will  probably  be  obliged 
to  answer.  No. 

"  P.  S. — Here  is  a  little  choice  bit.  .  .  .  My 
friend  W.,  happening  to  be  writing  to  the 
AthencsiLm  newspaper,  also  thought  he  might 
give  a  little  news  respecting  the  Gervandhaus 
concerts  this  year.  Amongst  other  things  men- 
tioned as  being  performed  was  Schumann's  music 
to  Lord  Byron's  *  Manfred,'  which,  being  one  of 
his  first  works,  and  acknowledged  as  great  music 
by  all  musicians,  was  commented  upon  by  him  in 
terms  of  highest  praise.  They  took  the  article 
and  printed  it  with  the  exception  of  the  whole 
paragraph  about  Schumann,  which  the  musical 
editor  had  cut  out!  This  a  fact  from  W.'s  own 
mouth.     Is  it  not  very  paltry?" 

At  the  foot  of  this  letter  comes  a  modest  line 
marked  "P.S. — Private.  I  am  writing  music  to 
the  '  Tempest.' " 

February  10,  1861. — "Very  much  occupied 
with  my  'Tempest,'  which  does  not  proceed  as 
quickly  as  I  could  wish.  I  have  already  com- 
pleted two  entr'actes,  two  dances,  and  a  song. 


48  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

besides  parts  of  the  melodrama,  but  it  is  in  the 
overture  I  have  come  to  grief,  for  I  cannot  get  it 
into  form  to  please  me.  ...  I  am  very  anxious 
to  know  if  yoti  will  like  my  music.  It  is  very 
different  to  any  you  have  heard.  For  instance 
[bar  quoted].  But,  of  course,  it  is  not  often  I  go 
into  such  extremes  as  that.  At  first  it  may  sound 
rather  harsh,  but  you  will  soon  grow  accustomed 
to  it,  and  most  probably  like  it  very  much." 

His  father  in  January  1861  begs  him  to  finish 
his  "Tempest"  music  before  returning  to  Eng- 
land, but  adds:  "  Make  up  your  mind  to  be  cut 
to  pieces  by  the  knowing  ones  when  you  produce 
anything  in  London.  If  you  escape  you  will  be 
lucky  indeed.  Even  Handel  himself  has  been 
catching  it  lately  from  Chorley.  '  Prodigious! '  as 
the  Domine  would  say." 

Arthur  writes,  April  11,  1861,  that  his  "Tem- 
pest" was  performed  with  great  success  in  Leipzig 
the  previous  Saturday,  and  that  he  will  be  in 
London  on  the  following  Monday  or  Tuesday. 


CHAPTER  III 

FIRST  PUBLIC  SUCCESS 

(1861-1866) 

Charles  Dickens — First  Visit  to  Paris — Rossini — Organist 
St.  Michael's  and  at  Covent  Garden  Opera — Visits  Ireland 
— Germ  of  English  Comic  Opera. 

ON  his  return  from  Leipzig  Sullivan  added 
several  numbers  to  his  "  Tempest " 
music,  and  it  was  produced  at  the 
Crystal  Palace  Concert  on  April  5,  1862.  This 
was  his  debut.  His  previous  successes  were  in 
the  direction  of  scholastic  achievement,  and  had 
brought  his  name  before  the  public  in  but  a  minor 
degree.  The  winning  of  the  Mendelssohn  scholar- 
ship, of  course,  appealed  mainly  to  a  more  or  less 
intimate  musical  circle,  and  so  far,  the  by  no 
means  unenviable  reputation  which  he  had  gai  ned, 
more  especially  as  being  a  conscientious  worker, 
and  a  young  man  of  considerable  promise,  had 
been  confined  to  his  immediate  associates,  and 

49 


so  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

those  concerned  in  the  direction,  or  criticism,  of 
the  work  done  at  the  Conservatorium  in  Leipzig. 
The  production  of  the  "Tempest"  proved  a 
veritable  triumph  for  the  youthful  composer. 
The  musical  critics  were  enthusiastic,  and  it  is  no 
exaggeration  to  say  that,  like  the  poet,  Sullivan 
woke  up  the  next  morning  to  find  himself  famous. 
Sir  George  Grove  and  Mr.  Manns,  who  con- 
ducted the  concerts  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  decided 
to  repeat  the  performance  on  the  following 
Saturday.  On  that  occasion  there  was  a  record 
attendance.  All  musical  London  would  seem  to 
have  gone  down  to  hear  it.  After  it  was  over 
Charles  Dickens,  who  had  gone  down  with' 
Chorley,  waited  in  the  artists'  room  until  Sullivan 
came  out,  and  with  a  characteristic  grip  of  the 
hand,  said:  "  I  don't  profess  to  be  a  musical 
critic,  but  I  do  know  that  I  have  listened  to  a 
very  remarkable  work."  This  was  the  beginning 
of  a  firm  friendship  between  them,  and  one  which 
was  only  severed  by  death. 

It  is  from  this  time,  April  1862,  that  Sir  Arthur 
dates  his  public  career  as  a  composer.  The 
"Tempest  "  music  had  been  written  when  he  was 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  51 

eighteen  and  its  successful  production  in  England 
took  place  before  he  was  twenty.  Whatever 
doubts  and  fears  he  may  have  entertained  up  to 
that  time,  he  then  definitely  decided  to  avoid 
teaching  and  to  rely  upon  composition.  As  he 
has  said  : 

"  I  was  ready  to  undertake  everything  that 
came  in  my  way.  Symphonies,  overtures,  ballets, 
anthems, hymn-tunes,  songs, part-songs,  a  concerto 
forthe  violincello,  and  eventually  comic  and  light 
operas,  nothing  came  amiss  to  me,  and  I  gladly 
accepted  what  the  publishers  offered  me,  so  long 
as  I  could  get  the  things  published.  I  composed 
six  Shakespearian  songs  for  Messrs.  Metzler 
and  Co.,  and  got  five  guineas  apiece  for  them. 
'  Orpheus  with  his  Lute,'  '  The  Willow  Song,' 
*0  Mistress  Mine,'  were  amongst  them,  the  first 
having  been  since  then  a  steady  income  to  the 
publisher.  Then  I  did  '  If  Doughty  Deeds',  and 
a  *  Weary  Lot  is  Thine,  Fair  Maid,'  for  Messrs. 
Chappell." 

These  were  sold  outright  for  ten  guineas  each! 
With  the  next  song,  however,  entitled,  "  Will  he 
Come,"  published  by  Messrs.  Boosey,  a  royalty 
system  was  inaugurated,  and  the  previously  pub- 


52  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

lished  songs  having  attained  by  this  time  a  well 
deserved  popularity,  the  result  of  the  royalty 
system  proved  eminently  gratifying  to  the  com- 
poser. 

It  was  towards  the  close  of  this  year  that  he 
made  his  first  visit  to  Paris,  in  company  with 
Charles  Dickens,  H.  F.  Chorley,  the  eccentric 
critic  of  the  Athenaeumy  and  Mr.  and  Mrs 
Frederic  Lehmann. 

In  one  of  his  letters  from  Paris  he  writes:  **  I 
am  to  play  the  *  Tempest '  (with  Rossini)  on 
Friday.  .  .  .  We  called  upon  Dickens,  and  then 
all  dined  together  (the  Dickens,  Lehmanns,  and 
selves)  at  the  Cafe  Brebant  and  then  went  on  to 
the  Opera  Comique  to  see  David's  new  opera, 
'  Lalla  Rookh.'  It  is  very  pretty,  but  rather 
monotonous. 

"The  particular  purpose  of  our  visit,"  Sir 
Arthur  tells  me,  "  was  to  hear  Madame  Viardot 
in  Gluck's  '  Orfeo.'  She  was  intensely  emotional 
and  her  performance  was  certainly  one  of  the 
greatest  things  I  have  ever  seen  on  the  stage. 
Chorley,  Dickens,  and  I  went  together,  and  I 
remember  that  we  were  so  much  moved  by  the 
performance,  and  it  was  of  so  affecting  a  character, 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  53 

that  the  tears  streamed  down  our  faces.  We 
vainly  tried  to  restrain  ourselves. 

"  I  went  about  a  good  deal  with  Dickens.  He 
rushed  about  tremendously  all  the  time,  and  I 
was  often  with  him.  His  French  was  not  par- 
ticularly good.  It  was  quite  an  Englishman's 
French,  but  he  managed  to  make  himself  under- 
stood, and  interviewed  everybody.  Of  course  he 
was  much  my  senior,  but  I  have  never  met  any 
one  whom  I  have  liked  better.  There  was  one 
negative  quality  which  I  always  appreciated. 
There  was  not  the  least  suspicion  of  the  poseur 
about  him.  His  electric  vitality  was  extreme, 
but  it  was  inspiring  and  not  overpowering.  He 
always  gave  one  the  impression  of  being  im- 
mensely interested  in  everything,  listening  with 
the  most  charming  attention  and  keenness  to  all 
one  might  say,  however  youthful  and  inexperi- 
enced one's  opinion  might  be.  He  was  a  delight- 
ful companion,  but  never  obtruded  himself  upon 
one.     In  fact  he  was  the  best  of  good  company. 

"  It  was  on  his  return  from  Paris  on  this 
occasion  that  the  train  accident  occurred  alluded 
to  in  Forster's  biography.  Dickens  told  me  that 
he  did   not  feel   anything  until  he  got  back  to 


54  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

London,  then  he  felt  quite  shattered  and  broken 
up,  and  Dickens  added:  '  I  felt  I  should  never  be 
able  to  go  in  the  railway  train  again  and  that  I 
must  take  some  strong  measure  to  fight  against 
my  own  nervous  weakness.'  The  next  day,  or 
the  day  after,  he  went  to  Paris  and  back 
again  over  the  same  ground.  If  he  had  not 
faced  the  trouble  in  this  way  he  thought  that 
his  travelling  days  on  the  railway  were  over. 
As  it  was  he  never  got  over  it  completely. 
The  sensation  would  come  upon  him  at  inter- 
vals. 

"  It  was  in  December  that  I  called  on  Rossini : 
Madame  Viardet  introduced  me.  Rossini  re- 
ceived me  with  the  greatest  kindness  and  took 
great  interest  in  my  composition.  I  had  with  me 
my  music  to  the  *  Tempest,'  arranged  as  a  piano- 
forte duet,  and  this  we — Rossini  and  I — used  to 
play,  or  a  part  of  it,  nearly  every  morning.  This 
was  because  he  had  taken  such  a  fancy  to  the 
music  in  question,  and  I  must  say  that  I  felt 
greatly  pleased,  as  one  could  never  accuse  Rossini 
of  insincerity,  nor  did  he  ever  fear  to  say  what  he 
thought,  however  unacceptable  his  verdict  might 
be.     When  I  left  him  he  begged  me  to  send  him 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  55 

a  copy  of  everything  I  wrote  and  to  keep  him 
au  courant  with  all  that  I  did. 

"  One  morning  when  I  called  in  to  see  him,  he 
was  trying  over  a  small  piece  of  music  as  I 
entered.  'Why,  what  is  that?'  I  exclaimed. 
He  answered  me  very  seriously,  '  It's  my  dog's 
birthday,  and  I  write  a  little  piece  for  him  every 
year.' 

"  I  induced  Chorley  to  let  me  take  him  to  meet 
Rossini.  Chorley  hesitated  a  good  deal  because 
he  had  sometimes  expressed  his  opinions  very 
freely  in  the  AthencBum,  and  not  always  favour- 
ably, about  Rossini's  music."  Sir  Arthur  adds 
smilingly  :  "  I  suppose  that  Chorley  thought  that 
Rossini  had  read  every  word  that  he,  Chorley, 
had  written.  However,  I  overcame  his  scruples 
with  regard  to  that,  and  took  him  with  me  one 
morning  to  meet  the  composer.  Rossini,  as  you 
will  see  in  the  miniature  which  he  gave  me,  was  a 
stout  man,  with  a  prominent  stomach.  Chorley 
was  as  thin  as  a  lath,  and  looked  as  if  he  had  no 
internal  organism  worth  mentioning.  As  soon  as 
I  came  into  the  room  I  said  '  Voila,  Maitre,  je 
vous  presente  M.  Chorley.'  To  which  Rossini 
replied  with  a  courtly  bow,  '  Je  vois,  avec  plaisir. 


56  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

que  monsieur  n'a  pas  de  ventre.'     Chorley  was 
completely  taken  aback. 

"Up  to  the  time  of  his  death  I  continued  to 
visit  Rossini  every  time  I  went  over  to  Paris, 
and  nothing  occurred  to  interfere  with  the  cor- 
diality of  our  friendship." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  intimacy  with 
Rossini  influenced  Sullivan  greatly.  This,  added 
to  the  impression  made  by  Madame  Viardet 
Garcia's  impersonation  of  "  Orfeo,"  had  the 
immediate  effect  of  making  him  desirous  of  know- 
ing more  about  the  opera  and  things  operatic. 
He  determined  to  write  something  suitable  for 
dramatic  presentation,  but  not  until  he  had 
mastered  the  technique  of  the  stage.  He  spoke 
to  his  friend  Michael  Costa,  who  was  the  con- 
ductor of  the  opera  at  Covent  Garden,  asking 
that  he  might  be  allowed  to  attend  the  rehearsals. 
Costa  refused  on  the  ground  that  he  could  make 
no  exception  to  his  rigid  rule  in  this  matter. 
Nevertheless,  Costa  finally  effected  a  handsome 
compromise,  and  offered  Sullivan  the  duties  of 
organist  in  the  opera.  This  offer  the  young 
composer  gladly  accepted,  little  dreaming  of  what 
great  importance  this  experience  would  ultimately 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  57 

prove.  He  had  been  there  but  a  short  time 
when  at  the  conductor's  request,  he  wrote  a  ballet 
for  the  opera.  It  was  entitled  "  L'ile  Enchantee." 
To  quote  Mr.  Willeby's  monograph  :  "  From  it 
alone  he  learnt  much  that  was  of  value  to  him. 
The  mere  fact  of  having  to  subordinate  his  music 
to  the  requirements  of  the  inventors,  the  scene 
painters,  stage  machinists,  and  premiere  danseuse, 
each  of  whom  had  not  one,  but  many,  words  to 
say,  was  of  itself  a  valuable  lesson — the  more  so 
as  these  people  were  the  best  of  their  kind,  and 
the  suggestions  they  made  were  generally  the 
outcome  of  knowledge  and  experience.  Certainly 
the  things  that  he  was  called  upon  to  illustrate 
musically  were  not  lacking  in  variety. 

"On  one  occasion,"  says  Sir  Arthur,  "I  was 
admiring  the  '  borders '  that  Beverley  had  painted 
for  a  woodland  scene.  '  Yes,'  he  replied,  '  they 
are  very  delicate,  and  if  you  could  support  them 
by  something  suggestive  in  the  orchestra,  we 
could  get  a  very  pretty  effect.'  I  at  once  put 
into  the  score  some  delicate  arpeggio  work  for 
flutes  and  clarionets,  and  Beverley  was  quite 
happy.  The  next  day  probably  some  such  scene 
as  the  following  would   occur.     Sloman,  stage 


58  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

machinist  {loq) :  *  That  iron  doesn't  run  in  the 
slot  as  easily  as  I  should  like,  Mr.  Sullivan  ;  we 
must  have  a  little  more  music  to  carry  her 
(Salvioni)  across.  Give  us  something  for  the 
'cellos,  if  you  can  ?  '  Certainly,  Mr.  Sloman  ;  you 
have  opened  up  a  new  path  of  beauty  in  orchestra- 
tion,' I  replied  gravely,  and  I  at  once  added  six- 
teen bars  for  the  'cello  alone.  No  sooner  was 
this  done  than  a  variation  (solo-dance)  was  re- 
quired, at  the  last  moment,  for  the  second 
danseuse,  who  had  just  arrived.  '  What  on  earth 
am  I  to  do  ?'  I  said  to  the  stage  manager,  'I 
haven't  seen  her  dance  yet — I  know  nothing  of 
her  style.'  '  I'll  see,'  he  replied,  and  took  the 
young  lady  aside.  In  five  minutes  he  returned. 
'  I've  arranged  it  all,'  he  said.  '  This  is  exactly 
what  she  wants  (giving  it  to  me  rhythmically) : 
Tiddle-iddle-um,  tiddle-iddle-um  rum-tirum-tirum^ 
sixteen  bars  of  that ;  then  rum-tmn  rum-tum, 
heavy  you  know,  sixteen  bars,  and  then  finish  up 
with  the  overture  to  "William  Tell"  last  move- 
ment, sixteen  bars  and  coda.'  In  ten  minutes 
time  I  had  composed  it,  and  written  out  a 
repetiteur  s  part,  and  it  was  at  once  rehearsed." 
Sullivan  had  also  been  appointed  organist  of 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  59 

St.  Michael's  Church,  Chester  Square,  soon  after 
his  return  from  Leipzig,  and  held  this  post  until 
1867.     In  regard  to  this  Sir  Arthur  remarks  : 

"When  I  was  organist  of  St.  Michael's,  my 
friend,  Cranmer  Byng,  was  appointed  vicar  of  a 
new  church,  and  I  designed  the  new  organ  for 
him  and  undertook  to  find  an  organist.  When 
the  day  arrived  for  the  consecration  I  hadn't 
obtained  the  organist  for  him,  so  I  volunteered 
to  play  for  two  or  three  Sundays  until  I  could 
find  some  one  else,  with  the  result,  however,  that 
I  played  there  for  two  or  three  years.  I  re- 
member that  at  the  consecration  of  the  church  by 
the  then  Bishop  of  London,  the  hour  fixed  was 
twelve  o'clock,  and  by  some  misunderstanding  the 
Bishop  didn't  arrive  until  one.  Consequently  I 
had  to  play  the  organ  the  whole  time  in  order  to 
occupy  the  attention  of  the  congregation.  As 
the  minutes  went  by  and  the  Bishop  didn't  arrive 
I  began  to  play  appropriate  music.  First  I 
played  "  I  waited  for  the  Lord,"  and  then  went 
on  with  a  song  of  mine  which  is  entitled  "Will 
he  come?"  The  appropriateness  of  the  pieces 
was  perfectly  apprehended  by  the  congregation." 

Choir  practice  and  Covent  Garden  rehearsals 


6o  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

filled  up  a  great  part  of  his  time,  but  he  never 
deviated  from  the  determination  to  earn  hisliving, 
not  as  an  organist,  nor  as  a  teacher,  but  as  a 
composer.  In  such  intervals  as  occurred  in  the 
performance  of  his  duties  as  organist  he  wrote 
many  delightful  songs,  some  of  which  have 
already  been  mentioned.  It  was  during  a  visit 
to  Ireland  that  he  wrote  his  well-known  sym- 
phony in  E,  his  only  contribution  to  this  great 
form  of  musical  art. 

There  is  an  allusion  to  it  in  one  of  his  letters 
home  dated  from  Richmond  Lodge,  Holywood, 
Belfast,  August  30,  1863:  "I  have  been  dread- 
fully idle,  but  already  I  feel  my  ideas  assuming 
a  newer  and  fresher  colour,  and  I  shall  be  able  to 
work  like  a  horse  on  my  return.  Why,  the  other 
night  as  I  was  journeying  home  from  Holestone 
(fifteen  miles  from  here)  the  whole  first  movement 
of  a  symphony  came  into  my  head  with  a  real 
Irish  flavour  about  it,  besides  scraps  of  the  other 
movement.  I  shall  get  it  ready  for  the  Musical 
Society  next  season.  I  have  been  photographed 
here,  yielding  to  the  entreaties  of  my  friends — 
and  very  successfully  I  think." 

In  another  letter,  written  from  Belfast  soon 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  6i 

afterwards,  there  is  an  interesting  allusion  to  his 
first  operatic  attempt,  "  The  Sapphire  Necklace," 
for  which  Mr.  Chorley  had  written  the  libretto. 

"  A  note  has  just  come,"  he  writes,  "  the  joint 
production  of  Miss  Dickens  and  Mrs.  Lehmann, 
to  tell  me  that  Dickens  is  perfectly  enchanted 
with  the  minuet  theme  in  my  opera — at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  overture,  and  which  Mrs.  Lehmann 
continually  plays  to  him  at  his  request.  He  even 
thinks  it  quite  sufficient  to  make  the  opera  a 
success." 

Mr.  Chorley's  libretto,  however,  proved  quite 
unsuitable  for  stage  presentation,  and  most  of  the 
music  has  been  since  utilised  in  other  works. 
Then  came  his  cantata  "Kenilworth."  Here 
he  again  suffered  at  the  hands  of  his  librettist,  as 
he  has  suffered  since  it  may  be  remarked,  mter 
alia,  on  much  more  recent  occasions. 

"Kenilworth"  was  produced  at  the  Birmingham 
Festival  (1864),  and  in  spite  of  the  libretto  it 
received  very  enthusiastic  recognition.  The 
interpolated  scene  from  "  The  Merchant  of 
Venice,"  "How  sweet  the  moon-light  sleeps," 
will  probably  be  best  remembered  and  is  often 
heard  now  in  the  concert  room. 


62  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

The  year  1866  was  an  eventful  and  a  busy  one 
for  him.  At  an  evening  party  in  a  friend's 
house  he  had  seen  Du  Maurier  and  Harold 
Power  play  Offenbach's  farce,  "  Les  Deux 
Aveugles,"  and  it  occurred  to  him  that  a  similar 
extravaganza  in  English  might  not  be  less  happy. 
On  his  way  home  from  that  party  he  discussed 
the  idea  with  his  friend  F.  C.  Burnand,  who 
promptly  proposed  an  adaptation  of  Morton's 
then  extremely  popular  farce,  "  Box  and  Cox." 
Soon  after  that  the  MS.  was  handed  to  the  com- 
poser, under  the  inverted  title  of  "  Cox  and  Box." 

Speaking  of  the  genesis  of  "  Cox  and  Box," 
Sir  Arthur  tells  me:  "There  was  a  society  of 
amateurs  who  met  for  the  purpose  of  singing 
part-songs  and  so  forth  at  Moray  Lodge,  Kensing- 
ton, the  house  of  Arthur  J.  Lewis,  who  after- 
wards married  Kate  Terry,  and  this  little  society 
called  itself  the  Moray  Minstrels.  They  were  all 
picked  voices  and  they  really  sang  to  perfection. 
Mr.  Lewis  gave  four  evening  entertainments  at 
his  house,  on  the  last  Saturday  in  January, 
February,  March,  and  April;  on  these  occasions 
he  issued  invitations  to  many  of  his  friends,  and 
these  parties  were  really  attended  by  all  the  best 


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HIS   LIFE   STORY  63 

people  of  that  time,  particularly  in  the  various 
professions — judges,  lawyers,  literary  men,  and 
great  painters.  And  then  we  had  a  light  supper 
afterwards,  of  oysters  and  refreshing  drinks. 
One  season  (1865),  o^  one  or  two  occasions, 
after  supper,  instead  of  any  more  singing,  they 
performed  '  Les  Deux  Aveugles,'  played  by 
Du  Maurier  and  Harold  Power,  the  son  of  the 
celebrated  actor  who  went  down  in  the  ill-fated 
President,  The  performance  of  the  play  was  so 
successful  that  it  was  suggested  that  I  should  do 
one  expressly  for  them,  and  so  Burnand  and 
myself  came  to  write  *  Cox  and  Box.'  " 

After  the  piece  had  been  performed  privately 
in  this  way  on  several  occasions  it  was  decided 
to  produce  it  in  public  at  the  Adelphi  Theatre, 
for  the  benefit  of  a  fund  organised  by  the  staff  of 
Punchy  on  behalf  of  their  late  colleague,  C. 
Bennett,  with  G.  Du  Maurier,  Harold  Power, 
and  Arthur  Blunt  ("Arthur  Cecil")  as  Box, 
Cox,  and  Serjeant  Bouncer,  respectively.  The 
way  in  which  the  accompaniment  was  left  to  the 
last  moment,  and  the  extraordinary  energy, 
physical  endurance,  and  rapidity  manifested  in 
the  work  of  orchestration  is  so  characteristic  of 


64  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

the  composer's  methods  and  resourcefulness,  in- 
stanced on  many  other  occasions,  that  I  must 
reserve  the  description  of  the  way  in  which  the 
music  came  to  be  written  for  a  special  chapter 
on  the  subject,  to  be  found  at  the  end  of  this 
book.  "  Cox  and  Box,"  and  a  still  further  de- 
velopment, "  Contrabandista,"  in  the  following 
year  (1867),  the  libretto  in  both  instances  being 
by  Burnand,  are  of  special  interest,  historically, 
for,  as  far  as  the  music  is  concerned,  they  were 
the  germ  from  which  has  sprung  the  English 
comic  opera  of  the  past  memorable  twenty-five 
years. 

Nor  was  the  more  professional  side  of  his  work 
allowed  to  remain  in  abeyance,  as  he  was  afforded 
plenty  of  scope  for  his  incessant  activity.  On 
September  17,  1866,  he  writes:  "  I  am  to 
conduct  the  Ballad  Concert  on  behalf  of  Manns — 
it  may  lead  to  greater  things,"  and  "  I  have 
received  a  letter  from  Sterndale  Bennett  offering 
me  the  Professorship  of  Composition  in  the  Royal 
Academy  of  Music." 

Occasionally  the  multiplicity  of  his  engage- 
ments necessitated  being  at  work  day  and  night, 
and  how  the   diurnal   programme   occasionally 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  65 

worked  out  is  exemplified  in  a  letter  dated  from 
Manchester,  December  6,  1866.  "Sim  sat  up 
with  me  "("  Sim "  was  Sim  Egerton,  the  late 
Lord  Wilton,  reputed  to  be  the  best  amateur 
musician  in  England)  "  until  four  o'clock  this 
morning,  and,  after  he  went  to  bed,  I  dressed 
myself  in  morning  clothes  and  packed  all  my 
things  together,  smoked  a  cigarette,  and  waited 
till  the  cab  came,  which  it  did  at  five  o'clock,  and 
then  I  drove  to  Huston  Square,  and  waited  about 
until  the  train  started  at  6.15  a.  m.  I  slept  a  good 
part  of  the  way,  but  was  nevertheless  awfully 
tired  when  I  got  to  Manchester  at  twelve  mid- 
day. The  rehearsal  was  at  half-past,  so  I  was  in 
ample  time.  We  worked  very  hard  for  two 
hours-and-a-half  at  the  symphony,  and  the  band 
cheered  me,  and  I  made  them  a  short  speech, 
and  Halle  was  very  kind,  and  in  fact,  everybody 
was  delighted  with  themselves  and  each  other. 
We  dine  at  six  and  the  concert  is  at  half-past 
seven." 

He  returned  to  town  the  same  night  to  attend 
a  rehearsal  next  morning  at  ten  o'clock,  feeling 
more  dead  than  alive.  The  year  1866  had  been 
one  of  activity  and  great  musical  achievement, 


66  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

but  it  was  saddened  by  an  event  which  inevitably 
comes  to  young  and  all,  but  is  often  tragic  beyond 
expression  to  those  who  love  them.  He  had 
accepted  an  invitation  to  write  a  work  for  the 
Norwich  Festival.  As  the  time  approached  for 
its  completion  he  had  written  nothing  which  was 
in  any  degree  satisfactory  to  himself.  About  a 
month  before  the  Festival  he  was  in  despair,  and 
told  his  father,  to  whom  he  was  passionately 
attached,  that  he  really  felt  he  would  have  to  give 
up  the  Norwich  work.  He  could  think  of  nothing. 
"  No,"  said  his  father,  "  you  mustn't  give  it  up, 
you  will  succeed  if  you  stick  to  it.  Something 
will  probably  occur  which  will  put  new  vigor 
and  fresh  thought  into  you.  Don't  give  it  up." 
His  words  were  prophetic,  but  how  grievous  was 
the  event  that  should  give  the  young  composer  a 
subject,  and  the  needful  momentum,  neither  of 
them  knew.  Three  days  after  this  discussion 
(September  22,  1866)  the  father  died  suddenly. 
On  the  evening  of  the  day  after  the  funeral  the 
grief-stricken  son  sought  relief  from  his  thoughts, 
and  some  expression  of  his  feelings,  in  his  work. 
Within  a  week  of  that  date  was  completed  his 
"  In  Memoriam  "  overture,  with  its  solemn,  long- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  67 

drawn  strains  of  a  funeral  dirge,  working  into  a 
passionate  movement,  as  if  an  overwhelming 
sorrow  was  carried  up  to  a  climax  of  exultant 
hope.  When  it  was  produced  at  the  Norwich 
Festival  it  provoked  not  less  emotion  in  those 
who  were  ignorant  of  the  origin  of  the  Overture 
than  in  those  who  knew. 

There  are  many  matters  of  too  delicate  and  too 
sacred  a  character  to  be  discussed  publicly,  but, 
quite  inferentially,  it  may  perhaps  have  been 
gathered  that  the  teaching  of  Sullivan's  home-life 
had  been  of  such  a  nature  (and  his  own  attitude 
being  very  far  removed  from  that  of  the 
materialist)  that  the  death  of  those  he  loved  best, 
after  the  first  pang  was  passed,  had  its  loftier  and 
consoling  side,  and  I  cannot  forbear  quoting  a 
letter  which  he  wrote  to  his  mother  from  Lucerne 
on  September  20,  1868,  two  years  after  his 
father's  death,  in  which  he  writes:  "  But  I  want 
you  to  have  this  on  Tuesday,  so  that  we  may  be 
all  together  in  spirit.  I  shall  be  spending  the 
day  happily  and  peacefully  in  the  mountains, 
which  is  what  I  shall  like  best.  I  know  you  have 
thought  me  hard  and  perhaps  unfeeling  some- 
times, dear  mum,  but  I  could  never  trust  myself 


68  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

to  speak  of  the  dear  one.  I  always  get  so  sick 
and  '  chokey,'  and  it  was  no  good  scolding  you  if 
I  myself  were  to  show  weakness.  Now  I  am 
much  stronger,  and  can  talk  and  think  of  him 
quite  calmly  and  peacefully,  and  like  to  do  so." 


CHAPTER   IV 

SECOND  VISIT  TO  PARIS 
(1867-1871) 

Tennyson — Paris  in  the  time  of  the  Commune — "The 
Prodigal  Son" — Emperor  and  Empress  Napoleon — Pro- 
phetic words  from  Prince  Henry  of  Battenburg. 

IN  the  autumn  of  1867  Sullivan  accompanied 
Sir  (then  Mr.)  George  Grove  to  Vienna  on 
a  successful  voyage  of  discovery  for  Schubert 
MSS.  Sir  George  Grove  has  already  described 
in  his  appendix  to  Kreissler's  "  Life  of  Schubert  " 
the  way  in  which  the  then  almost  forgotten,  but 
now  well-known,  music  in  "  Rosamunde "  was 
discovered,  how  delighted  they  both  were  at  the 
unearthing  of  this  practically  buried  treasure,  and 
the  good  time  that  he  and  Sullivan  had  in  playing 
over  the  dusty  MSS.  together.  The  owner 
would  not  permit  them  to  be  taken  away,  and  the 
two  sat  up  all  night  copying  the  parts.  They 
then  went  on  to  Paris,  and  Sullivan,  writing 
July,  1867,   says:   "We   met   Strauss   on   board, 

69 


70  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

going  to  Frankfort,  and  we  fraternised  and  sat  on 
the  deck  together,  and  suffered  agonies  in  com- 
pany, so  that  it  was  quite  jolly,"  and  after  a 
description  of  a  day  spent  at  the  Exhibition  with 
Grove — perhaps  Sir  George  Grove  will  forgive 
my  quoting  the  followingcomplimentary  reference 
in  consideration  of  the  saving  clause  at  the  end  of 
it.  "  What  shall  I  say  of  Grove?  It  would  be 
painting  the  lily  to  try  and  describe  his  goodness 
and  charm,  so  I  refrain.  We  take  great  care  of 
each  other,  are  very  economical,  haggle  over 
centimes,  and  get  on  famously.  I  shall  read  this 
part  to  him,  so  have  made  it  strong!  " 

"  In  1867,"  Sir  Arthur  tells  me,  "  I  received  a 
special  appointment  to  help  in  the  musical  ar- 
rangements, and  the  opening  of  the  Exhibition 
was  celebrated  by  a  banquet  held  at  the  old  Hotel 
de  Louvre  (which  does  not  exist  now),  and  there 
were  present  the  various  Royal  Commissioners  of 
different  countries,  with  the  late  Lord  Granville 
in  the  chair.  The  banquet  consisted  of  dishes 
from  all  parts  of  the  world,  at  least  they  were  so 
described  on  the  tremendously  long  menu.  I 
was  requested  to  secure  some  glee  singers  from 
England  to  sing  glees  during  the  dinner  as  they 


ARTHUR    SULLIVAX 

A.BTAT.    2S. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  71 

do  at  most  English  public  banquets,  and  so, 
following  our  custom  here,  directly  dinner  was 
over,  they  sang  the  grace,  "Non  Nobis  Domine." 
At  the  end  of  it  Lord  Granville's  face  was  a 
study,  for  the  grace  was  greeted  with  a  universal 
burst  of  enthusiastic  applause,  and  cries  of  '  Bis! 
bis!  bis!'  came  from  all  parts  of  the  room!  I 
didn't  feel  justified  in  giving  it  a  second  time,  and 
the  fact  that  no  encore  was  given  must  have 
mystified  the  Russians,  Chinese,  and  others  who 
had  called  for  it." 

"Granville  was  a  perfect  master  of  the  French 
language,  and  spoke  admirably  on  this  occasion. 
I  remember  that,  acknowledging  the  fact  that 
ladies  were  present,  he  entreated  their  pardon  for 
the  weariness  the  speeches  must  have  caused 
them,  although  it  was  impossible  to  pardon  them 
for  the  distraction  which  they  had  caused  to  the 
various  plenipotentiaries  by  their  beauty,  and  so 
he  went  on  in  this  delightful  manner,  although  I 
confess  that  which  sounds  so  fine  in  French  comes 
rather  flat  in  translation." 

On  his  way  back  to  England  the  Leipzig 
Concert  Direction,  hearing  of  Sullivan's  presence 
in  the   town,  invited    him   to  conduct   his   "  In 


73  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Memoriam"  overture,  than  which  they  could  have 
paid  him  no  greater  compliment. 

An  overture  entitled  "Marmion"  had  been 
commissioned  by  the  Philharmonic  Society,  and 
had  been  produced  by  them  in  June.  This,  with 
"  Contrabandista  "  and  a  concerto  for  the  violin- 
cello,  comprised  his  output  for  the  year,  in  addi- 
tion to  a  number  of  songs,  hymn-tunes,  and  minor 
pieces. 

Not  the  least  of  his  good  fortune  was  the 
friendship  of  Tennyson,  who  had  occasionally 
visited  him  at  his  house  in  Claverton  Terrace, 
and  on  February  lo,  1867,  Sullivan  writes  home 
from  the  Isle  of  Wight  to  say:  "  When  I  got 
here  I  had  a  cup  of  tea  and  then  went  and 
smoked  with  Tennyson  until  dinner-time.  He 
read  me  all  the  songs  (twelve  in  number),  which 
are  absolutely  lovely,  but  I  fear  that  there  will  be 
a  great  difficulty  in  getting  them  from  him.  He 
thinks  they  are  too  light,  and  will  damage  his 
reputation,  &c.  All  this  I  have  been  combating, 
whether  successfully  or  not  I  shall  be  able  to  tell 
you  to-morrow." 

He  was  not  unsuccessful,  though  there  was  a 
slight  rift  in  the  lute  by  reason  of  a  preface  which 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  73 

Tennyson  felt  it  incumbent  upon  him  to  write  to 
the  songs  in  question,  and  which  was  construed 
by  many  of  those  who  read  it  as  a  reflection  upon 
the  musician.  The  point  is  not  one  which  need 
be  revived  now,  and  the  accompanying  letters 
from  Tennyson  to  the  composer,  reproduced  in 
facsimile,  will  suffice  for  elucidation. 

Sir  Arthur  has  told  me  that  he  always  felt  that 
Tennyson  "  was  the  one  great  man  whose  per- 
sonal appearance  seemed  to  correspond  with  his 
work.  He  always  appealed  to  me  as  being  the 
rugged  old  prophet  Isaiah  of  this  country.  I 
really  owed  much  to  his  gentleness  and  patience. 
I  actually  had  the  audacity  to  lecture  him  about 
rhythm!  'Don't  mix  up  your  iambics  and 
spondees'  I  would  tell  him,  and  then  continue 
my  dissertation  in  pretty  much  the  same  strain! 
Of  course  one  reason  of  his  good-nature  in  this 
matter  was  that  he  knew  that  I  was  not  discussing 
his  verse  from  the  point  of  view  of  a  critic  of 
poetry,  but  merely  in  regard  to  certain  musical 
difficulties.  You  see  he  would  write  a  simple 
song  or  ballad  wherein  the  music  to  each  verse 
should  be  the  same,  but  which  really  required  a 
separate  setting,  and  would  make  strong  accents 


74  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

in  one  verse,  where  in  the  corresponding  place  in 
another  verse  he  would  place  a  weak  one,  so  that 
the  ballad  became  most  difficult  for  setting  to 
music.  It  is  a  glaring  fault  with  most  hymn- 
writers  also." 

In  1869  was  produced  his  first  important 
clerical  work,  "The  Prodigal  Son,"  with  Titiens, 
Trebelli,  Sims  Reeves,  and  Santley  in  the  solo 
parts.  It  was  a  piece  of  work  which  did  much  to 
firmly  establish  his  reputation  as  a  composer. 

It  is  no  lack  of  compliment  to  him  to  say  that, 
beyond  and  apart  from  the  extreme  ability  dis- 
played in  the  work  he  had  already  done,  the  field 
had  been  singularly  open  to  him,  for  music  in  this 
country  stood  in  no  small  need  of  rejuvenation. 
The  occasion  demanded  the  man,  and  with  the 
genius  which  is  expressed  in  the  better  part  of 
his  work,  and  the  grace  and  distinction  which 
characterizes  everything  he  has  set  his  hand  to,  it 
is  not  surprising  to  recollect  that  from  the  first  he 
had  come  to  his  own,  and  his  work  had  received 
immediate  recognition  everywhere.  In  this  one 
respect  he  had  certainly  been  exceptionally  fortu- 
nate, for  genius  has  often  had  long  to  wait  for  its 
recognition.    Seven  years  before,  the  young  man 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  75 

of  twenty  had  come  over  from  Leipzig  and  had 
taken  the  ear  of  the  public  with  his  "  Tempest  " 
music,  and  had  never  since  lost  it.  Yet  even  this 
receptivity  on  the  part  of  the  public,  with  a  corre- 
sponding absence  of  rivalry  and  professional 
jealousy,  had  another  side,  and  there  is  no  doubt 
that,  up  to  this  point,  so  unaccustomed  were 
English  critics  to  anything  like  versatility  in  com- 
position, that  the  mere  fact  that  the  author  of  the 
"  In  Memoriam  "  overture  had  written  "  Cox  and 
Box"  and  "  Contrabandista"  must  have  added 
not  a  little  uncertainty  to  their  hopeful  expect- 
ancy, which  such  a  work  as  the  "  Prodigal  Son  " 
did  much  to  set  at  rest. 

If  I  may  use  a  not  very  pretty  Americanism  he 
had  now  fully  "  arrived  "  and  in  the  following  year 
(1869)  set  the  seal  to  his  reputation  by  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  of  his  lighter  works,  the  "  Overture 
di  Ballo,"  which  was  written  for  the  Birmingham 
Festival.  To  adopt  the  opinion  of  a  sound 
musical  critic,  "  While  couched  throughout  in 
dance  rhythms  the  overture  is  in  strict  form,  and 
for  melodic  charm,  graceful  fancy,  and  delicacy 
of  treatment  it  is  difficult  to  rival  it  amongst 
modern  music." 


76  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

The  Press  had  already  learnt  to  write  of  him  as 
promising  to  be  one  of  the  foremost,  if  not  the 
foremost,  composer  this  country  has  ever  pro- 
duced. 

Notwithstanding  the  work  which  he  managed 
to  get  through,  he  found  time  to  do  what  he  has 
hardly  ever  omitted  to  do  during  a  busy  life — to 
get  away  into  fresh  scenes  for  a  month  or  so,  and 
recruit  his  energies  whilst  thinking  out  fresh  com- 
positions. 

In  the  October  of  '68  he  is  at  Munich,  having 
visited  Madame  Schumann  at  Baden-Baden,  who 
had  many  autographs  and  MSS.  of  her  husband's 
to  show  him,  and  in  the  corresponding  month  of 
the  following  year  we  find  him  at  Brussels,  al- 
though the  experience,  in  this  instance  at  all 
events,  does  not  seem  to  have  been  particularly 
refreshing. 

"  This  is  awfully  dull,"  he  writes  from  Brussels. 
"  We  are  dragging  out  our  time  wearily  here,  wait- 
ing for  Bentham's  debut,  which  is  fixed  for  Sun- 
day, to  the  great  disgust  of  all  his  English  friends, 
and  his  mother  and  sisters,  but  we  shall  all  go  of 
course.  Directly  he  does  appear  I'm  off.  I  have 
serious  thoughts  of  going  to  Paris  for  a  month. 


Ills   LIFE   STORY  77 

I  am  just  beginning  to  get  into  the  sound  and 
feeling  of  the  language,  and  I  think  a  month's 
work  would  enable  me  to  speak  it  tolerably  well. 
Not  to  be  able  to  do  so  is  an  intolerable  nuisance. 
Arthur  Blunt  turned  up  last  night  from  Boulogne, 
with  a  complete  guide  to  Brussels,  drawn  for  him 
by  a  friend,  and  which  has  had  the  effect  of  utterly 
confusing  him,  as  he  can't  find  any  single  place  in 
the  town.  He  always  goes  in  the  opposite  direc- 
tion. We  have  been  to  all  the  respectable  places 
of  entertainment,  and  having  exhausted  that 
resource  have  begun  the  more  disreputable  ones. 
These  are,  if  anything,  more  depressing  than  the 
theatres,  and  we  sit  with  solemn  faces  until  the 
very  end  of  an  evening,  and  then  go  home  slowly 
and  sadly  to  bed." 

From  thence  he  went  to  Aix-la-Chapelle,  drove 
to  the  principal  hotel,  asked  if  "M.  Burnande" 
were  there,  and  "  found  Frank  at  the  table  d'hote 
in  the  midst  of  a  circle  of  merry  listeners." 
Later  on,  from  Lyme,  in  Cheshire,  he  writes: 
"  Biggest  house  that  I  have  ever  been  in  that  is 
comfortable.  Very  old,  Elizabethan.  Full  of  his- 
torical and  interesting  traditions.  Room  I  sleep 
in  is  the  chamber  once  occupied  by  Mary,  Queen 


78  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

of  Scots,  and  the  bed,  a  marvellous  piece  of  wood- 
carving,  was  slept  on  by  Bradshaw,  the  regicide. 
The  people  in  the  house  now  are  Lord  and  Lady 
Norris,  Val  Prinsep,  Lord  and  Lady  Skelmers- 
dale,  Lord  and  Lady  Denbigh,  and  their  daughter. 
Lady  Ida  Fielding. 

When  the  news  came  of  the  distress  in  Paris, 
consequent  on  the  seige  in  1871,  a  Mansion  House 
Relief  Fund  was  inaugurated.  Arthur  Sullivan's 
name  was  among  those  placed  on  the  Committee, 
and  a  day  or  two  days  after  the  Versailles  troops 
had  entered  the  city  and  vanquished  the  Commu- 
nards, he  rushed  off  to  Paris,  immediately  pre- 
ceded by  Sir  George  Grove  and  W.  Von  Glehn. 
His  experience  there  can  best  be  told  in  his  own 
words.  The  only  letter  which  I  can  find  written 
from  Paris  at  that  time — June  5,  1871 — may  be 
found  interesting. 

"After  a  series  of  thrilling  adventures,  not  un- 
accompanied by  danger,  I  just  find  time  amidst 
the  rattling  of  the  shells  and  the  thunder  of  the 
cannon,  to  write  and  say  that  hitherto  I  am  safe 
and  unwounded.  I  found  Grove  and  Willie  Glehn 
just  dressing,  and  their  surprise  was  only  equalled 
by  their  delight.    We  hired  a  small  open  carriage 


HIS   LIFE  STORY  79 

and  drove  all  through  the  city  to  see  the  ruins — it 
is  something  too  shocking  to  see  the  result  of  the 
uncontrolled,  devilish  spite  of  these  ruffians  of  the 
Commune.  The  people  all  wear  a  miserable  look, 
and  this,  added  to  the  wet,  nasty  day  and  the 
absence  of  the  greater  part  of  the  population, 
makes  a  very  dismal  effect.  Grove  paid  me  that 
sovereign,  but  borrowed  it  again  an  hour  after- 
wards at  a  barricade  to  give  to  Paschal  Grousset, 
who  would  otherwise  have  shot  him. 

"The  whole  place  looked  as  if  it  had  been 
stricken  with  the  small-pox — the  bullet-marks  on 
the  white  walls  of  the  houses,"  Sir  Arthur  tells 
me.  '*  In  many  of  the  houses  the  front  wall  and 
some  of  the  floors  had  been  torn  down,  and  it  was 
so  pathetic  to  see  the  little  pictures  and  household 
gods  remaining  on  the  other  three  walls  and  over 
the  fireplaces.  While  I  was  in  Paris  all  the  lights 
had  to  be  put  out  at  half-past  ten.  We  went  to 
the  Gymnase  and  saw  two  celebrated  people, 
Ravel  and  poor  Aimee  Desclee.  There  were 
about  eighty  people  in  the  house,  and  it  was  lit  in 
the  most  dismal  manner;  whether  the  gas  had 
been  partly  cut  off,  or  what,  I  don't  know,  but 
with  so  few  people  about  in  this  sombre  half-light, 


8o  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

the  whole  performance  produced  a  most  weird 
effect.  However,  we  had  to  get  out  of  it  and  get 
home  early,  in  order  to  avoid  being  arrested  in  the 
streets.  Of  course  it  was  a  very  bad  time  for  pro- 
fessional people  in  Paris,  and  a  great  many  French 
people  took  refuge  in  England,  among  them 
artists  like  Gounod,  with  whom  I  became  ac- 
quainted and  whose  work  interested  me  a  good 
deal. 

"  Dr.  and  Madame  Conneau  were  great  friends 
of  mine,  and  they  came  over  to  England,  in  attend- 
ance, as  it  were,  upon  the  Emperor  and  Empress 
Napoleon.  Through  the  Conneaus  I  became 
more  intimatelyacquainted  with  the  Emperor  and 
Empress  at  the  time  they  were  staying  atChisle- 
hurst.  They  were  exceedingly  kind  to  me,  and 
frequently  invited  me  down  to  Chislehurst.  The 
Emperor  was  always  sad  and  somewhat  silent,  and 
wore  the  air  of  a  man  who  had  suffered  great  pain. 
In  fact,  he  had  been  a  martyr  to  the  same  com- 
plaint to  which  I  have  been  such  a  victim,  and  I 
rarely  saw  him  smile.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Empress  was  bright  and  cheerful,  and  after  lun- 
cheon she  would  ask  me  to  play  to  her,  and 
Madame  Conneau  would  sing.   One  could  not  but 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  8i 

be  struck  very  forcibly  with  the  love  and  devotion 
that  both  of  them  had  for  their  son,  the  little 
Prince  Imperial.  He  was  of  a  most  sweet  and 
patient  disposition,  as  well  as  very  intelligent  and 
high-spirited.  When  he  and  young  Louis  Con- 
neau  entered  as  cadets  at  Woolwich,  they  often 
came  up  on  Saturday  afternoons  and  spent  their 
half-holidays  either  with  me  at  my  house  or  with 
Madame  Conneau.  The  Prince  spoke  English 
exceedingly  well,  and  in  every  way  seemed  to  me 
to  have  the  tastes  and  accomplishments  of  a  young 
Englishman,  fond  of  riding,  hunting,  and, indeed, 
all  out-door  exercises.  Since  the  Emperor's  death 
I  have  always  been  privileged  to  keep  up  my 
acquaintance  with  the  Empress  and  often  see  her 
at  Farnborough." 

"  I  well  remember  an  incident  which  occurred 
when  I  was  lunching  there  one  day  with  Prince 
Henry  of  Battenburg.  After  lunch  the  Empress 
took  us  to  the  Prince  Imperial's  room,  so  that  we 
might  see  the  relics  and  things  reminiscentof  him. 
She  broke  down  and  could  not  go  into  the  room, 
leaving  the  Prince  and  me  to  go  in  together.  We 
were  looking  at  the  Prince  Imperial's  coat,  with 
the  bullet-hole  in  it,  when  I  made  the  remark  about 


82  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Africa:  *  How  many  had  gone  out  to  Africa,'  I 
said;  '  only  to  find  the  graves  of  themselves  or 
their  reputations  in  that  country! '  I  had  no  fore- 
knowledge, of  course,  of  what  would  happen  to 
my  companion,  but  I  remember  that  as  we  stood 
in  the  darkening  room,  I  was  curiously  impressed 
with  the  gravity  of  his  tone,  as  he  replied,  '  Yes, 
and  it  is  not  over  yet.  There  are  still  many  more 
lives  to  be  sacrificed  there! '  The  Prince  had  no 
idea  of  going  out  to  Africa  at  that  time." 


CHAPTER  V 

SULLIVAN  MEETS  GILBERT 
(1872-1875) 

Musician  Laureate  —  Meeting  with  W.  S.  Gilbert  — 
"  Thespis  " — "  The  Light  of  the  World  "  —  Sims  Reeves 
— "Trial  by  Jury"  —  Lord  Chief  Justice  Cockbum  — 
Desbarrolles. 

IT  should  be  observed  that  since  1863,  when 
Sullivan  was  asked  to  compose  the  music  on 
the  occasion  of  the  marriage  of  H.  R.  H.  the 
Prince  of  Wales,  he  may  be  said  to  have  held  the 
unofficial  position  of  Musician-Laureate.  "  On 
Shore  and  Sea"  was  written  for  the  opening  of  the 
International  Exhibition  at  South  Kensington  in 
1871,  for  which  Gounod  also  wrote  "  Gallia,"  and 
in  1872  Sullivan  wrote  the  Festival  "Te  Deum" 
in  celebration  of  the  recovery  of  the  Prince  of 
Wales  from  his  serious  illness.  It  might  be 
thought  that  the  music  written  in  this  way  almost 
"  to  order  "  would  be  found  lacking  in  strength 
and  spontaneity;  but  that  this  is  not  the  case  a 
reference  to  the  music  written  in  connection  with 

83 


84  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

various  public  functions,  and  which  will  be  found 
tabulated  in  their  date  order  in  the  Appendix  to 
this  book,  will  sufficiently  prove.  Nor  will  it  be 
denied  for  one  moment  that  in  the  case  of  the 
greatest  of  our  Poets  Laureates  the  work  done  in 
virtue  of  the  office  he  held  was  among  the  best 
work  which  he  did. 

Sullivan's  "  Te  Deum  "  was  produced  at  the 
Crystal  Palace  on  Thanksgiving  Day,  May  i, 
1872.  Upwards  of  30,000  people  were  present, 
among  them  the  Princess  Louise,  the  Duke  of 
Edinburg,  Prince  and  Princess  of  Teck,  and  the 
Duke  of  Cambridge.  The  performance  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  London  contingent  of  the  Handel 
Festival  Choir,  the  orchestra  of  over  2,000  per- 
formers being  conducted  by  Mr.  Manns,  Mdlle. 
Titiens  taking  the  solos. 

It  was  in  the  preceding  year  (1871)  that  Arthur 
Sullivan  had  been  introduced  to  W.  S.  Gilbert. 

'*  I  was  introduced  to  him,"  Sir  Arthur  tells  me, 
"by  Frederic  Clay  at  one  of  the  German  Reed 
entertainments.  Of  course  he  had  done  a  good 
deal  of  work,  and  I  knew  him  by  name  very  well 
before  that  occasion." 

"Some little  time  after  our  meeting,  John  Hoi- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  85 

lingshead  wanted  a  piece  (in  1872)  for  Nelly 
Farren  and  J.  L.  Toole,  and  asked  Gilbert  to  do 
the  piece  and  asked  me  to  write  music  for  it.  The 
piece  was  '  Thespis;  or  The  Gods  Grown  Old,' 
and  both  music  and  libretto  were  very  hurriedly 
written." 

"  Until  Gilbert  took  the  matter  in  hand  choruses 
were  dummy  concerns,  and  were  practically  noth- 
ing more  than  a  part  of  the  stage  setting.  It  was  in 
'  Thespis '  that  Gilbert  began  to  carry  out  his 
expressed  determination  to  get  the  chorus  to  play 
its  proper  part  in  the  performance.  At  this 
moment  it  seems  difficult  to  realize  that  the  idea 
of  the  chorus  being  anything  more  than  a  sort  of 
stage  audience  was,  at  that  time,  a  tremendous 
novelty.  In  consequence  of  this  innovation,  some 
of  the  incidents  at  the  rehearsal  of  '  Thespis ' 
were  rather  amusing.  I  remember  that,  on  one 
occasion,  one  of  the  principals  became  quite  indig- 
nant and  said,  '  Really,  Mr.  Gilbert,  why  should 
I  stand  here?  I  am  not  a  chorus-girl!'  to 
which  Gilbert  replied  curtly,  '  No,  madam,  your 
voice  is  not  strong  enough,  or  no  doubt  you  would 
be.'  However,  he  always  carried  his  point,  and 
incidents  of  this  sort  became  more  infrequent. 


86  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

"  One  day,  at  a  rehearsal,  a  girl  came  up  to  us 
crying  and  Gilbert  asked  her  the  cause  of  it. 
Between  her  sobs  she  told  us  that  she  had  been 
insulted.  We  at  once  assured  her  that  we  would 
look  into  the  matter,  and  that  no  girl  should  be 
insulted  in  our  company,  but  what  was  it  all  about  ? 
She  said  that  Miss  X.,  one  of  the  costumiers' 
assistants,  had  been  very  rude  to  her,  and  had  said 
to  her,  'You  are  no  better  than  you  ought  to  be.' 
Gilbert  immediately  looked  very  sympathetic  and 
said  to  her,  '  Well,  you  are  not,  are  you,  my  dear?' 
to  which  she  replied  promptly,  *  Why,  of  course 
not,  Mr.  Gilbert! '  '  Ah,  that's  all  right! '  he  said, 
and  she  went  away  perfectly  comforted." 

"On  the  occasion  of  our  visit  to  America,  Gilbert 
discovered  that  some  of  the  dresses  were  out  of 
order,  and  told  the  American  assistant  that  they 
were  to  be  shortened  in  time  for  the  next  morn- 
ing's rehearsal.  '  That  can't  be  done,'  he  ex- 
claimed. '  But  it  must  be  done,'  Gilbert  replied. 
The  young  man  then  expectorated  with  great  ve- 
hemence and  we  sprang  aside  hastily.  The  young 
man  was  sent  out  of  the  theatre  directly,  and  we 
called  for  his  superior,  who  afterwards  said  to  us, 
'  All  right,  the  work  shall  be  done,  and,  by  the 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  87 

way,  you  don't  seem  to  like  that  young  man  I  sent 
up  to  you  this  morning?'  '  I  don't  object  to  the 
young  man',  Gilbert  said,  '  he  may  possess  every 
virtue  imaginable,  but  I  do  object  to  his  spitting 
on  my  boots.'  '  Waal,'  replied  the  man,  not  lik- 
ing to  condemn  an  American  citizen,  '  his  man- 
ner is  fresh.' 

"  There  were  other  difficulties,  among  the  more 
important  being  the  fact  that,  in  those  days,  there 
were  comparatively  few  actors  or  actresses  who 
could  sing,  and  of  those  who  pretended  to,  hardly 
any  could  be  said  to  compass  more  than  six  notes. 
Naturally  I  found  myself  rather  restricted  as  a 
composer  in  having  to  write  vocal  music  for  people 
without  voices!  Notwithstanding  all  this,  the 
piece  was  fairly  successful,  and  ran  a  good  many 
nights." 

No  one  could  have  then  imagined  that  two  men 
had  met  who  were  to  destroy  the  vogue  for  French 
opera-bouffe  in  this  country,  and  who  would  make 
an  English  comic  opera  possible.  All  sorts  of 
rubbish,  translated  from  the  French,  and  set  to 
still  more  rubbish  dance  music,  had  held  the 
boards  up  to  that  time,  and,  on  the  production  of 
"Thespis"  (1872),  the  dramatic  critic,  not  being 


88  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

blessed  with  prophetic  vision,  remarks  somewhat 
patronisingly,  "Mr.  W.  S.  Gilbert  and  Mr.  Arthur 
Sullivan  have  attempted,  with  not  a  little  success, 
to  imitate  French  comic  opera,  concerning  which 
we  have  heard  so  much  for  the  last  half-dozen 
years,"  but  goes  on  to  say:  "In  these  days — when 
the  French  critics  are  savagely  turning  round  on 
us,  and  calling  us  pickpockets — it  is  not  disagree- 
able to  find  that  we  have  authors  and  musicians 
quite  as  talented  as  our  neighbours,"  and  in  the 
same  critique  there  is  one  significant  sentence: 
"  Mr.  Sullivan  has  certainly  persuaded  us  of  one 
thing — that  a  musician  can  write  to  any  metre." 

I  imagine  that  "  Thespis"  will  be  best  remem- 
bered by  the  exquisite  musical  setting  to  the  sim- 
ple little  Gilbertian  ballad,  "The  Little  Maid  of 
Arcadee." 

During  this  period  Sullivan  conducted  the  so- 
called  "Classical  Nights"  at  the  Covent  Garden 
Promenade  Concerts;  travelled  on  the  Continent 
in  order  to  get  a  permanent  orchestra  for  the 
Royal  Aquarium,  and,  in  1873,  wrote  his  great 
oratorio,  "  The  Light  of  the  World." 

Meanwhile,  perhaps  I  may  be  forgiven  for 
quoting  one  of  his  letters,  in  which  he  describes 


HIS    LIFE    STORY  89 

the  rapid  movement  necessary  to  fulfil  his  engage- 
ments, written  September  16,  1872,  from  Cossey 
Hall,  Norwich: 

"  I  hadn't  a  chance  of  writing  to-day,"  he  writes 
to  his  mother,  "as  I  passed  all  the  day  at  St. 
Andrew's  Hall,  and,  being  very  hungry,  went  and 
dined  with  Titiens  and  Trebelli  and  so  missed 
the  post.  ...  I  got  to  town  at  ten  o'clock  yes- 
terday, wrote  three  letters  at  the  Garrick,  went 
home,  found  Godfrey'  hanging  about  Pall  Mall, 
got  into  his  cab,  then  up  to  Montagu  square,  and 
sat  for  some  time,  back  to  the  Garrick  for  my  lug- 
gage, and  got  to  Shoreditch  about  two  o'clock.  I 
found  a  heap  of  the  orchestra  and  singers  going 
down,  and  divided  my  journey  between  Santley 
and  others  in  a  smoking  carriage,  and  Trebelli 
and  others  in  a  non-smoker.  I  got  a  bed  at  an 
inn,  went  and  sat  an  hour  with  Titiens  and  Tre- 
belli, and  was  up  fresh  for  rehearsal  this  morning. 
'  St.  Peter '  was  rehearsed  first,  and  then  the  'Te 
Deum,'  which  went  well  at  rehearsal,  and  even 
better  at  the  concert  to-night.  Then  I  drove  out 
here  in  the  moonlight  (five  miles)  and  met  with  a 
most  kindly  reception  from  Lord  and  Lady  Staf- 

'  His  cabman  who  drove  him  about  for  many  years. 


90  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

ford,  who  had  got  some  supper  for  me.  They 
were  dancing  when  I  arrived,  and  a  priest  was 
playing  a  choice  selection  of  waltzes.  I  can't 
describe  the  place  because  I  only  got  a  glimpse 
of  the  exterior  as  I  drove  up,  but  it  looks  magni- 
ficent, a  lot  of  towers  and  turrets,  and  the  inside 
is  certainly  royal.  There  is  a  fine  chapel  which 
Lord  Stafford  took  me  to  see  in  the  moonlight, 
and  a  little  dim  lamp  was  burning  in  front  of  the 
altar.  I  must  drive  into  Norwich  in  the  morning 
to  rehearse  '  Guinivere,'  as  there  was  no  time  to 
do  it  to-day." 

These  excursions  into  the  country  were  not 
always  so  busy.  Here  is  another  side  of  the 
picture.  In  a  letter  dated  from  "  Grieve's  Hotel," 
Langholm,  N.  B.: 

"  Fancy  me  getting  up  at  six  this  morning, 
going  into  the  stables  and  getting  a  gamekeeper 
to  pour  buckets  of  water  over  me  (as  there  are  no 
baths  in  this  little  inn),  then  breakfast,  cigarette, 
&c.,  and  starting  at  eight  for  the  moors  in  a  wag- 
gonette and  beginning  shooting  at  a  quarter  to 
nine.  That  is  what  I've  done  to-day  and  have 
got  to  do  two  days  more.  We  have  been  shoot- 
ing eight  hours,  or,  rather,  walking  up  and  down 


/ 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  91 

these  awful,  endless  hills  they  call  moors  and  never 
a  bird  of  any  sort  could  we  get  near.  The  rain 
and  wind  kept  them  off.  I  was  drenched  through 
without  by  the  ram  andsoaked  inwardly  by  whisky. 
I  never  thought  I  could  have  drunk  so  much  raw 
spirit,and  it  has  about  as  much  effect  as  cold  water. 
As  there  is  no  house  we  live  in  this  little  inn  and 
are  very  comfortable." 

From  Pembroke  College,  Oxford,  May  5,  1873: 
"  Yesterday  I  called  on  the  Liddells  (he  is  Dean 
of  Christ  Church  and  Chancellor  of  the  Univer- 
sity), and  they  asked  me  to  dinner,  but  I  went  in 
after  dinner  instead,  and  found  a  good  many  nice 
people,  and  they  had  a  little  music.  Miss  Liddell 
sang  '  Orpheus,'  charmingly.  To-day  I  lunched 
with  them  and  went  to  Ruskin's  lecture  after- 
wards. Then  Prince  Leopold  met  us,  and  after 
the  lecture  he  and  I  walked  back  to  the  Liddell's 
and  had  tea.  We  chummed  together  and  he  gave 
me  his  photograph." 

Later  on,  writing  from  Eastwell  Park,  Ashford, 
Kent:  "  I  had  a  lot  of  musical  letters  to  write  for 
H.R.H.  to-day,  so  missed  the  post  for  you.  This 
morning  we  were  to  have  gone  out  shooting,  but 


S 


92  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

it  was  wet.  The  duchess  and  I  played  some 
duets  after  dinner — Schubert's  marches.  She 
plays  extremely  well.  Princess  Christian  asked 
me  to  try  and  help  a  protege  of  hers  at  Windsor. 
I  wish  I  had  a  quarter  the  influence  that  folks 
think  I  have.  To-night  is  New  Year's  Eve  in 
the  Russian  calendar,  so  there  was  service  in  the 
chapel,  M.  Popoff  coming  down  from  London  for 
it,  and  there  will  be  a  grand  service  to-morrow." 
From  Ingestre,  Stafford: 

"  Dicey  and  I  played  cribbage  under  great 
disadvantages  as  far  as  Blisworth,  when  he  arose 
and  departed,  the  winner  of  one  shilling!  Jack^ 
and  I  then  got  on  very  well  until  within  half-a- 
mile  of  the  house,  when  the  horse  of  the  fly  fell 
down  and  cut  its  knee  badly,  so  I  had  to  run  on 
to  the  house  and  send  up  assistance,  a  stableman 
and  a  donkey  cart  to  fetch  the  luggage.  Then 
Lady  Shrewsbury,  Lady  Theresa,  and  I  walked 
up  to  the  scene  of  the  disaster  and  watched  the 
operations." 

In  the  autumn  of  1874,  he  is  in  Paris  with  the 
view  of  meeting  a  librettist  (Albert  Millaud),  and 
on  arrival  writes:  "All  right.    Train  upset  three 

1  His  black  sen^ant. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  93 

times,  and  ran  off  the  rails  twice,  but  beyond 
upsetting  a  tea-table  no  damage  was  done." 

On  February  25,  1874,  he  writes  home:  "If 
you  are  bothered  again  by  newspaper  reporters, 
just  say  that  so  far  as  I  am  concerned  I  know 
nothing  about  the  proposed  knighthood  beyond 
what  I  have  seen  in  the  papers.  I  don't  see  why 
I  should  be  'interviewed'  on  everything  that  may 
be  said  about  me.  There  is,  of  course,  no  foun- 
dation for  such  a  thing,  and  it  only  grows  out  of 
the  good-natured  fancy  of  the  Hornet^ 

Part  of  the  summer  of  1874  was  spent  in  Ger- 
many, and  in  August  he  writes  home  from  Coburg 
that  he  is  ''en route  for  Dresden,  where  the 
Lindsays  have  invited  me  to  be  their  guest  for  a 
few  days,  and  then  we  all  return  to  London 
together.  We  have  been  going  on  pretty  much 
the  same  way  as  usual — excursions,  dinners,  &c. 
Monday  was  the  Duchess's  name's  day,  and  there 
were  great  doings.  .  .  .  Yesterday  the  Rouz- 
landts,  ^  Captain  Clerk,  Lady  Mary  Butler,  and 
myself  went  over  to  Niirnberg  to  see  the  place. . . . 
We  had  four  hours  to  see  Niirnberg  in,  and  got 
home  at  eleven  at  night  awfully  tired.     But  it  is 

1  Madame  Christine  Nilsson  and  her  husband. 


94  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

worth  seeing.  It  is,  I  should  think,  the  most 
beautiful  and  picturesque  town  in  the  world. 
Every  house  is  a  picture  to  study — all  old-fash- 
ioned and  high-roofed,  with  wonderful  gables  and 
beautiful  ironwork  about  them.  It  was  a  very  fine 
day,  and  the  Duke  took  care  of  our  comforts, 
sending  a  luncheon  basket  which  we  discussed  in 
the  train.  .  .  .  Everything  had  been  telegraphed 
for  and  arranged  beforehand,  On  Monday  the 
Grand  Duke  sent  one  of  his  Privy  Councillors 
with  the  order  of  the  Coburg  House  for  me 
(Knight,  2nd  class),  so  that  I  swagger  about  with 
a  ribbon  and  star.  He  also  sent  the  Order  of 
Merit  for  Art  and  Science  to  Nilsson.  So  we 
are  both  very  pleased,  as  he  is  very  sparing  with 
his  decorations."  The  most  interesting  guest  was 
Field-Marshal  von  Roon,  who  was  the  great 
Prussian  Minister  of  War. 

Rosenau  —  where  they  stayed  —  is  a  small 
country  house  where  the  Prince  Consort  was 
born — very  pretty,  and  lying  in  a  beautiful  park. 
The  Queen  stopped  there  when  she  came  to 
Coburg.  "  After  dinner  we  went  all  over  the 
house  and  saw  all  the  rooms  ....  billiards  all 
the  evening  ....  fortunately  brought  a  lot  of 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  95 

work  here  and  shall  write  some  songs — that  will 
fill  up  my  time  every  morning."  "  London  is 
emptying  itself,  of  course,  which  will  be  a  comfort 
for  me  when  I  get  back.  I  hate  the  season 
heartily." 

At  the  Duke's  castle  at  Carlenberg  he  remarks 
that  in  the  evening  "  Nilsson  sang  and  I  accom- 
panied her — both  by  heart.  She  is  quite  in 
earnest  about  singing  an  opera  for  me  next 
season,  and  we  are  the  best  of  friends  and  com- 
panions." 

Franzensbad,  August  8,  1874. — "Our  party 
broke  up  on  Friday.  We  kept  the  Duke's  birth- 
day as  I  told  you  we  should.  There  was  a  grand 
dinner  in  the  evening  at  which  we  wore  our 
orders!  .  .  .  Next  morning  we  had  a  general 
breakfast  at  11:30  and  12:30;  the  Rouzlandts  and 
I  took  leave  of  the  Duke  and  Duchess  ....  we 
arrived  here  at  5:30,  and  were  met  at  the  station 

by  Mrs.  G ,  an  American  lady  staying  here 

with  her  three  children.  She  is  the  lady  whom 
the  Rouzlandts  have  come  to  see,  and  is  a  perfect 
specimen  of  a  high-bred,  charming  American 
woman  ....  very  intelligent,  well  educated, 
pretty  manners,  and  as  cheery  as  a  bird.     I  am 


96  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

writing  this  in  her  sitting-room,  which  is  the 
general  room  for  us.  This  place  is  a  typical 
specimen  of  the  Bohemia  Baths.  Quiet,  pretty, 
and  unexciting,  everyone  living  more  or  less  out 
of  doors,  taking  their  meals  and  listening  to  the 
music  under  the  shade  of  the  trees.  ...  It  is 
rather  a  relief  after  the  life  we  have  been  leading 
to  be  perfectly  free  and  unfettered,  and  not  to 
have  to  dress  in  different  costumes  three  or  four 
times  a  day;  not  that  I  can  say  one  word  of 
complaint,  for  H.R.H.  was  really  so  kind  and 
thoughtful  for  us  that  it  would  be  ungrateful. 
He  really  is  one  of  the  nicest  men  in  the  world. 
He  is  so  remarkably  clear-headed  and  thoughtful 
and  very  clever.  He  is  quite  idolized  in  Coburg, 
and  I  don't  wonder  at  it." 

Hotel  Bellevue,  Dresden,  August  12,  1874. — 
"  I  am  glad  to  be  in  Dresden  again;  it  is  such  a 
whiff  of  the  old  times,  and  I  am  enjoying  it 
immensely,  for  our  party  is  the  pleasantest  and 
most  agreeable  to  be  wished  for.  I  wrote  to  you 
last  from  Franzensbad.  .  .  .  We  took  it  into  our 
heads  to  drive  over  to  Eger,  about  three  or  four 
miles  distant,  the  oldest  town  in  Germany,  they 
say,  and  I  can  well  believe  it,  for  it  is  the  most 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  97 

ramshackle,  tumble-down,  queer-looking  place  I 
ever  saw.  And  yet  it  is  extremely  picturesque, 
and  historically  of  great  interest,  for  here  Wallen- 
stein  was  murdered  during  the  Thirty  Years'  War. 
We  went  into  the  room  where  he  was  killed  (it  is 
now  filled  with  relics  of  him — a  sort  of  museum), 
and  I  stood  like  'Sein,  the  astrologer' — don't  you 
know  the  photograph  in  the  drawing-room  close 
to  the  door?  Then  there  was  the  old  castle,  built 
as  usual  about  eleven  hundred  years  ago.  The 
chapel  is  in  perfect  preservation,  built  in  two 
storeys,  the  upper  one  for  the  lords  and  ladies, 
the  under  one  (where  the  mass  was  performed) 
for  the  servants — a  nice  distinction  to  draw,  which 
is  even  now  preserved  in  a  good  many  country 
churches!  I  tried  the  organ  in  the  church,  but  it 
wasn't  a  good  one  at  all.  There  were,  however, 
two  splendid  knockers  and  handles  (carved  brass) 
on  the  door — magnificent  pieces  of  work,  and 
when  I  am  very  rich  and  build  my  palatial  resi- 
dence, I  mean  to  have  them  copied  for  the  great 
hall  doors!  However,  enough  of  Eger.  .  .  .  On 
Monday  we  all  left  for  Dresden  ...  a  large  and 
cheery  party,  the  Rouzlandts,  Mrs.  G.  and  her 
three  children,  myself,  and  four  servants.     I  was 


98  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

the  only  one  who  spoke  German  fluently,  and  so 
was  paymaster,  courier,  and  keeper  of  order/  .  .  . 
The  next  day  Sir  Coutts  and  Lady  Lindsay 
arrived,  and  we  have  all  been  one  party  ever 
since.  We  go  to  the  picture  gallery  and  other 
museums,  and  visit  all  the  old  china  and  bric-a- 
brac  shops,  of  which  we  are  good  customers.  I 
have  been  rather  extravagant  and  bought  two  or 
three  lovely  old  Dresden  cups,  &c.  Mrs.  G.  has 
given  me  a  delicious  little  old  tea  service,  and 
to-day  Sir  Coutts  gave  me  a  grand  old  piece  of 
German  pottery  (about  two  hundred  years  old), 
which  I  had  taken  a  great  fancy  to." 

Balcarres,  Fife,  September  9,  1874. — "We  had 
a  heavenly  day  yesterday  and  drove  in  the  morn- 
ing to  the  English  Church,  six  miles  distant. 
There  was  a  very  nice  service,  and  we  all  sang 
the  hymn  lustily,  to  the  accompaniment  of  a  small 
organ,  played  by  one  young  lady  and  blown  by 
another.  .  .  .  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Goschen  arrived 
yesterday.  Colonel  and  Lady  Florence  Cust  came 

1  Sir  Arthur  tells  me:  "I  telegraphed  in  my  own  name  for  rooms. 
At  the  station  the  pile  of  luggage  was  tremendous.  One  port- 
manteau only  belonged  to  me,  and  I  was  immensely  amused  when 
the  driver  of  the  fly  said,  'Do  all  these  things  belong  to  the  Sulli- 
van family?'  " 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  99 

to-day.  To-morrow  the  Yorkes  go,  I  am  sorry 
to  say.  I  am  doing  my  songs,  and  am  getting  on 
pretty  well,  but  wet  weather  is  more  favourable  to 
composition  than  fine!" 

Balcarres,  Fife,  September  21,  1874. — "I 
finished  and  wrote  out  my  song,  '  Thou  art  pass- 
ing hence,  my  Brother,'  and  dated  it  the  22nd. 
It  is  very  curious  that  I  should  have  done  it  just 
now.  Time  passes  very  quickly.  It  doesn't  seem 
eight  years  ago  since  dear  father  died." 

Washington  Hotel,  Liverpool,  September  29, 
1874. — "  The  streets  were  all  alive  and  bunting 
flying  about  everywhere,  and  thousands  of  people 
waiting  by  the  station  yesterday  v;hen  I  arrived, 
but  it  was  not  in  honour  of  me,  but  of  the  Duke, 
who  was  going  about  on  all  sorts  of  ceremonies 
with  the  Mayor  and  a  guard  of  honour.  I 
couldn't  go  to  the  banquet  last  night  because  I 
had  a  full  rehearsal  of  my  oratorio.  Every  one 
was  there  except  Reeves,  v/ho  telegraphed  to  say 
he  could  not  come  until  Wednesday.  I  hope  he 
will  come,  not  for  my  sake  alone,  but  for  his  own. 
The  Duke  arrived  punctually  this  morning  at  the 
concert  and  stayed  to  the  very  end.  I  didn't  see 
him  to  speak  to,  as  he  was  upstairs  and  I  down. 


loo  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Davison,  Bennett,  Ryan,  Patey,  and  Patti,  are  all 
staying  in  this  hotel." 

In  August  his  oratorio  "  The  Light  of  the 
World  "  had  been  written,  and  produced  at  the 
Birmingham  Musical  Festival.  It  created  tre- 
mendous enthusiasm,  record  attendances  and  so 
forth  wherever  produced.  It  was  barely  nine 
months  since  he  had  written  the  music  to  the 
light  and  fantastic  "Thespis,"  produced  as  we 
have  seen,  in  the  December  of  the  preceding 
year,  and  although  the  critics  received  the  new 
oratorio  with  almost  unanimous  approval,  there 
were  many  who  seemed  to  feel  somewhat  irritated 
by  the  fact  that  both  productions  had  been  the 
work  of  one  man.  The  public,  generally  speak- 
ing, detests  the  indefinite.  It  is  always  anxious 
to  tear  aside  anything  in  the  nature  of  mystery. 
It  has  no  reverence  for  it.  We  love  to  label  a 
man,  and  are  indignant  if  he  does  not  deliver  his 
goods  as  per  the  bill  of  lading  with  which  we 
have  invested  him.  Here  was  the  composer  of 
"  Contrabandista "  and  "Thespis"  taking  the 
grandest  possible  theme  for  his  work  and  appar- 
ently challenging  comparison  with  Handel  and 
Mendelssohn!     The  general   opinion,  however, 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  loi 

would  seem  to  have  been  very  fairly  expressed 
by  the  critic  of  The  Standard  vi\\Qn  he  wrote: 

"  After  due  reflection  the  general  opinion  is 
that  in  his  oratorio  Mr.  Arthur  Sullivan  has 
enriched  the  world's  musical  library  with  a  fine 
work,  distinctly  representative  of  the  modern 
school  of  composition,  and  calculated  to  exist  in 
that  sphere  where  it  holds  a  prominent  position 
as  a  specimen  of  the  new  type  of  oratorio,  the 
dignity  of  which  it  upholds.  Considering  the 
difficulties  of  precedent  with  which  Mr.  Sullivan 
had  to  deal,  in  Handel's  *  Messiah '  and  Bach's 
'  Passion  Music,'  not  to  mention  Mendelssohn's 
unfinished  '  Christus,'  he  may  be  said  to  have 
entered  the  lists  against  an  array  of  giants.  To 
say  that  in  the  face  of  these  he  has  held  his  own 
ground,  if  he  has  not  encroached  on  theirs,  is  to 
bestow  praise  of  the  highest  significance;  and  to 
Mr.  Sullivan  belongs  the  acknowledgment  that 
he  has  incontestably  secured  great  honours  to 
himself  without  robbing  his  predecessors  of  a 
single  laurel.  The  '  Light  of  the  World '  has 
nothing  whatever  in  common  with  the  '  Messiah'; 
it  borrows  neither  style  nor  ideas  from  the 
'Passion   Music';   and   it   even   steers   clear  of 


I02  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

that  magnetic  rock,  Mendelssohn,  upon  which  so 
many  fair  and  well-freighted  barks  have  been 
lured  to  their  doom." 

The  composer  was  certainly  to  be  no  less  con- 
gratulated upon  the  vocal  interpretation  which  he 
secured.  Titiens,  Patey,  Trebelli  and  Santley, 
Foli  and  Sims  Reeves  carried  a  by  no  means 
light  burden  triumphantly,  and,  without  making 
any  invidious  distinction  where  all  v/ere  so  good, 
Sims  Reeves  particularly  distinguished  himself. 
No  one  could  hope  to  outrival  him  in  the  sacred 
fervour  which  he  infused  into  his  rendering,  and 
in  the  management  of  his  voice,  expression,  and 
perfection  of  phrasing,  which  he  had  added  to  the 
magnificent  gift  which  nature  had  given  him.  It 
may  be  doubted  if  this  country  cannot  well  afford 
to  boast  that  in  Sims  Reeves — happily  still  with 
us — we  can  lay  claim  to  the  fact  that  this  country 
has  given  birth  to  the  finest  vocalist — tenore 
robiisto — that  the  world  has  ever  known. 

This  is  not  the  place  for  detailed  criticism  of 
the  oratorio,  if  I  were  at  all  competent  to  furnish 
it.  It  would  be  very  fairly  suggested  that,  apart 
from  raising  the  question   of  competence,  the 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  103 

biographer  and  other  friends  of  a  composer  are 
possibly  prejudiced  in  his  favour.  In  any  case  it 
is  always  desirable  to  avoid  the  use  of  the  super- 
lative, and  throughout  the  book,  wherever  it  may 
seem  necessary  to  refer  to  the  merit  or  otherwise 
of  a  production,  I  shall  content  myself  with  quot- 
ing the  opinion  of  others.  The  only  definite  and 
complete  judgment,  of  course,  is  that  of  posterity, 
and  that  is  an  issue  v/hich  every  one  is  free  to 
discuss.  The  point  of  view  of  a  biographer  must 
needs  be  that  of  a  contemporary  historian,  and  so 
I  am  more  concerned  with  the  nature  of  the 
reception  of  each  composition  and  the  conditions 
under  which  each  composition  was  produced, 
contented  to  leave  to  others  the  task  of  discussing 
and,  perhaps,  prematurely  deciding  upon,  the 
merits  or  demerits,  and  the  permanance  or  other- 
wise, of  the  work  under  review. 

Inpursurance  of  this  intention  I  do  not  think  I 
can  do  better  than  quote  one  paragraph  from  the 
long  notice  in  the  Observer  of  that  date  (August 
31,  1873)  as  being  a  fairly  typical  expression  of 
opinion  on  the  oratorio  contemporary  with  its 
production. 

"  If  we  have  spoken   at  some  length  of  the 


I04  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

'  Light  of  the  World,'  it  is  merely  because  the 
occasion  amply  justified  our  doing  so.  The  orato- 
rio is  one  of  imagination,  of  not  only  clever  ideas, 
but  of  really  devotional  religious  thought.  The 
orchestra  is  handled  throughout  in  a  manner  which 
only  one  who  is  fully  acquainted  with  each  instru- 
ment, its  individual  capabilities,  and  its  effect  in 
combination,  is  able  to  appreciate.  The  instru- 
mentation is  never  obtrusive,  but  it  is  always  deli- 
cate and  expressive,  while  many  orchestral  pas- 
sages are  notable  for  the  beauty  of  the  scoring. 
The  vocal  parts,  solo  and  choral,  are  written  with 
the  object  of  producing  the  fullest  effects  by  the 
most  legitimate  means.  They  exhibit  great  talent 
in  treatment,  and,  considering  the  nature  of  the 
subject,  are  written  with  considerable  variety.  In 
conclusion,  'The  Light  of  the  World'  is  a  great 
production,  and  we  may  safely  look  now  to  Mr. 
Sullivan  for  sacred  works  of  the  highest  class, 
since  the  originality  of  his  genius  has  escaped  the 
siren-like  influence  of  Mendelssohn,  whose  fasci- 
nating style  has  proved  too  frequently  the  de- 
struction of  original  talent." 

It  was  not  until  the  beginning  of  1875  that  Mr. 
D'Oyly  Carte,  who  was  then  managing  for  Miss 


HIS   LIFE  STORY  105 

Selina  Dolaro,  then  playing  "  Perichole,"  at  the 
little  theatre  in  Dean  Street,  Soho,  finding 
that  they  were  not  doing  "good  business," 
approached  Gilbert  and  Sullivan. 

"  It  was  on  a  very  cold  morning,"  Sir  Arthur 
tells  me,  "  with  the  snow  falling  heavily,  that 
Gilbert  came  round  to  my  place,  clad  in  a  heavy 
fur  coat.  He  had  called  to  read  over  to  me  the 
MS.  of '  Trial  by  Jury.'  He  read  it  through,  and 
it  seemed  to  me,  in  a  perturbed  sort  of  way,  with 
a  gradual  crescendo  of  indignation,  in  the  manner 
of  a  man  considerably  disappointed  with  what  he 
had  written.  As  soon  as  he  had  come  to  the  last 
word  he  closed  up  the  manuscript  violently,  appa- 
rently unconscious  of  the  fact  that  he  had  achieved 
his  purpose  so  far  as  I  was  concerned,  inasmuch  as 
I  was  screaming  with  laughter  the  whole  time. 
The  words  and  music  were  written,  and  all  the 
rehearsals  completed  within  the  space  of  three 
weeks,"  and  all  London  went  to  see  it.  As  the 
Times  had  it,  "  Mr.  Sullivan,  in  fact,  has  accom- 
plished his  part  in  the  extravaganza  so  happily 
that — to  ascend  some  steps  higher  towards  the 
empyrean — it  seems,  as  in  the  great  Wagnerian 
operas,  as  though  poem   and    music    had    pro- 


io6  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

ceeded  simultaneously  from  one  and  the  same 
brain." 

Penley,  unnamed  in  the  programme,  filled  the 
modest  rHe  of  Foreman  of  the  Jury,  while  the 
elder  brother,  Fred.  Sullivan,  who  had  been  for 
some  little  while  in  the  Dolaro  company,  played 
the  Judge  with  such  humourous  severity  and  all- 
round  ability  that  he  contributed  not  a  little  to  the 
original  success  of  the  piece.  It  was  produced  on 
March  25,  1875,  ''^^  ^or  some  considerable  time, 
and  was  the  first  joint  production  of  Gilbert  and 
Sullivan,  which  showed  definitely  that  there  were 
two  men  who  could  produce  something  which 
should  be  mirth-provoking  without  lacking  the  lit- 
erary and  artistic  element.  "  There  is  a  genuine 
humour  in  the  music,"  the  T"^;;^^^  continued  "as  for 
instance,  in  the  unison  chorus  of  the  jurymen,  and 
the  clever  parody  on  one  of  the  most  renowned 
finales  of  modern  Italian  opera;  and  there  is  also 
melody,  both  fluent  and  catching,  here  and  there, 
moreover,  set  off  by  little  touches  in  the  orchestral 
accompaniments  which  reveal  the  experienced 
hand." 

The  run  of  the  comic  "  Trial  by  Jury  "  was 
practically  contemporaneous  with  another  trial  of 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  107 

a  more  serious  character,  the  memorable  Tich- 
borne  Claimant  case. 

Sir  Alexander  Cockburn  was  Lord  Chief  Justice 
at  that  time,  and  Sir  Arthur  tells  me,  "  Although 
he  was  very  fond  of  me  personally,  being  very 
fond  of  music,  he  did  not  like  the  notion  of  our 
'  Trial  by  Jury '  at  all,  as  he  thought  the  piece 
was  calculated  to  bring  the  bench  into  contempt! 
He  went  to  see  the  piece  once,  remarking  after- 
wards that  it  was  very  pretty  and  clever  and 
'  all  that  sort  of  thing,'  but  he  would  not  go  again 
for  fear  he  should  seem  to  encourage  it. 

"  I  used  to  go  and  sit  on  the  Bench  with  him, 
however,  at  the  time  of  the  trial  of  the  Claimant, 
and  occasionlly  I  would  sleep  at  his  house  over- 
night, so  that  I  might  be  in  time  in  the  morning 
to  drive  down  with  him  to  the  Court.  The 
incidents  of  the  trial  and  Cockburn's  masterly 
summing-up  are,  of  course,  matters  of  history, 
but  I  was  greatly  struck  by  the  effect  of  the 
adverse  verdict  on  the  Claimant.  He  was,  as  you 
know,  a  big  burly  fellow,  but  the  moment  the 
verdict  was  given  he  seemed  in  some  unaccount- 
able manner  to  decrease  promptly  in  bulk,  so 
that  his  clothes  appeared  to  hang  loosely  about 


io8  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

him.  I  certainly  never  witnessed  a  more  curious 
sight." 

Speaking  of  the  various  people  he  has  known, 
among  them  Lord  Chief  Justice  Cockburn, 
Tennyson,  Dickens,  Wilkie  Collins,  Leighton, 
and  Millais,  Sir  Arthur  remarks  that  with  Millais 
he  was  always  on  the  most  affectionate  terms. 
"  When  I  was  very  young  and  didn't  have  much 
to  do  I  used  to  spend  a  good  deal  of  my  time  in 
his  studio  playing  on  the  pianoforte  while  he 
painted. 

"One  night  when  I  was  at  Gounod's  house  in 
Park  Place,  there  came  in  after  dinner  a  venerable, 
white-haired,  handsome  old  man.  He  sat  down 
and  talked  to  some  people  in  another  part  of  the 
room.  I  asked  Gounod  who  he  was,  and  Gounod 
exclaimed,  '  Oh,  he  is  the  celebrated  Desbar- 
rolles.'  Of  course  I  knew  him  by  reputation 
with  regard  to  his  work  on  the  hand,  so-called 
palmistry  being  then  a  new  thing  to  the  public. 
Gounod  took  me  across  the  room,  and,  without 
introducing  me,  or  mentioning  my  name,  said, 
'  Here  is  a  subject  for  you.  Look  at  his  hand.' 
The  venerable  old  man  took  up  my  hand,  looked 
at  it,  and  in  a  moment  said,  '  Oh  dear,  you  have 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  109 

had  a  yery  great  shock  in  your  life  so  many  years 
ago.'  I  said,  '  No,  you  are  mistaken,'  but  he  in- 
sisted, adding  that  it  was  the  death  of  some  one  I 
loved,  and  in  a  moment  I  remembered  that  the 
year  he  mentioned  would  be  the  year  of  the 
extremely  sudden  death  of  my  father.  He  then 
went  on  to  mention  many  details  which  could 
have  been  known  to  no  one  else  but  myself,  and 
I  must  confess  that  this  rather  staggered  me. 
There  was  nothing  of  the  charlatan  about  him." 


CHAPTER  VI 

IDLING  IN  ITALY 

(1875-1877) 

Conductorship — Visits  Italy — Death  of  Fred  Sullivan— 
"The  Lost  Chord"— "Henry  VIII."— "The  Sorcerer"— 
Sir  Coutts  and  Lady  Lindsay — Princess  Louise. 

SHORTLY  after  the  production  of  "The 
Light  of  the  World "  Sullivan  received 
from  the  University  of  Cambridge,  in  com- 
pany with  his  old  master,  Sir  John  Goss,  the 
honorary  degree  of  "  Doctor  of  Music,"  and  in 
the  year  under  consideration  (1875),  after  a  great 
deal  of  pressure  had  been  put  upon  him,  he 
accepted  the  post  of  Principal  of  the  National 
Training  School  of  Music.  It  was  a  post  which 
he  accepted  very  unwillingly  as  he  had  always 
been  adverse  personally  to  teaching  in  any  form. 
In  reference  to  the  school,  its  history  and 
development  under  the  new  name  are  interesting 
and  important,  especially  as  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan 
was  so  completely  identified  with  it,  and  I  venture 
to  quote  his  own  words  in  regard  to  it.     "  The 

no 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  m 

Royal  Academy  of  Music  had  fallen  into  very 
low  water  at  that  time,  and  Sir  Henry  Cole 
thought  it  was  a  favourable  opportunity  to  estab- 
lish an  institution  for  musical  education.  It  was 
his  desire  to  get  everything  centered  at  South 
Kensington,  so  as  to  bring  all  the  art  schools 
together.  He  experienced  a  great  deal  of  diffi- 
culty, and  one  reason  was  that  he  seemed  to  think 
that  such  an  institution  could  be  carried  on  as  if 
the  art  of  music  were  an  exact  science.  Even- 
tually they  wanted  me  to  become  principal  of  it, 
but  I  declined  because  I  didn't  approve  of  the 
principles  which  had  been  adopted.  However, 
very  great  pressure  was  brought  to  bear  on  me, 
and  after  some  mutual  concessions  I  very  un- 
willingly accepted  the  post  of  principal  and  held 
the  position  for  six  years. 

"  I  got  a  very  fine  teaching  staff  about  me,  and 
we  certainly  turned  out  a  number  of  first-rate 
practical  musicians,  who,  without  doubt,  exercised 
great  influence  in  the  cause  of  music  throughout 
the  country,  having  in  their  turn  become  teachers, 
organists,  and  so  forth.  Dif^culties  arose  with 
reference  to  the  establishment  of  the  school  on 
a  permanent  basis,  and  eventually  the  Prince  of 


112  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Wales  and  the  then  Duke  of  Edinburgh  took  the 
matter  up  with  great  zeal,  and  so  the  Royal 
College  of  Music  was  founded  on  the  basis  of  the 
Training  School  which  I  had  conducted.  It  was 
to  all  intents  and  purposes  the  same  institution. 
They  took  over  our  building,  our  library,  and  our 
teaching  staff.  Sir  George  Grove  was  appointed 
Director,  and  carried  on  the  institution  on  the 
lines  which  I  had  already  laid  down.  So  you 
see  that  the  National  School  of  Music  was  really 
the  forerunner  and  parent  of  the  Royal  College 
of  Music." 

In  the  winter  of  the  same  year  he  also  con- 
ducted the  Choral  Union  Orchestral  Concerts  in 
Glasgow,  and,  as  reflecting  the  opinion  of  that 
time — just  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago — it  is  inter- 
esting to  note  that  ^  propos  to  these  concerts, 
one  paper  remarked  :  "  The  committee  have 
acted  wisely  in  gaining  the  services  of  a  con- 
ductor of  Mr.  Sullivan's  reputation  and  position. 
England  has  produced  but  few  musicians  whose 
names  are  likely  to  live.  That  Mr.  Sullivan 
belongs  to  this  small  number  he  has  given  us 
strong  reason  to  hope.  We  do  not  know  how 
far  a  recent  statement  that  his  name  is  a  uni- 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  113 

versal  drawing-room  favourite,  maybe  gratifying 
to  a  composer  of  high  and  earnest  aspirations, 
but  we  are  quite  certain  that  work  of  another 
sort  ought  to  occupy  Mr.  Sullivan,  and  that  the 
accomplishment  of  really  great  things  in  his  art 
must  be  to  him  simply  a  matter  of  choice.  The 
very  first  essential  for  a  good  orchestral  conductor 
is  that  of  perfect  familiarity  with  his  music,  and 
this  Mr.  Sullivan's  training  and  experience  have, 
of  course,  insured.  The  orchestra  is,  in  the 
main,  the  same  as  that  of  last  season,  yet  last 
night  it  was  often  difficult  to  believe  this  .... 
the  result  was  in  every  way  such  a  complete 
expression  of  the  composer's  intentions." 

Not  the  least  service  which,  throughout  his 
busy  life.  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  has  rendered  to  the 
revival  of  musical  work  in  this  country  is  indicated 
in  the  paragraph  which  I  have  quoted.  Much 
more  is  required  of  a  conductor  than  that  he  shall 
wave  a  baton  in  front  of  an  orchestra.  One 
cannot  refrain  from  paying  one's  modest  tribute 
of  praise  to  the  fact  that  on  the  thousand-and-one 
occasions  on  which  he  has  been  called  upon  to 
conduct,  he  has  evinced  his  extreme  catholicity  of 
taste.     He  has  ever  shown  a  musicianly  "  radical- 


114  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

ism"  in  full  sympathy  with  the  purpose  and 
method  of  each  individual  composer,  and  each 
item  in  his  musical  programme  has  been  given 
the  care  and  attention  which  he  would  have 
demanded  in  the  case  of  his  own  work.  More- 
over, he  has  never  been  lacking  in  good  general- 
ship in  a  matter  which  involves  more  tact  and 
trouble  than  one  can  imagine,  while  his  own 
painstaking  enthusiasm  has,  on  all  occasions,  so 
communicated  itself  to  the  executants  that,  even 
after  an  exceptionally  long  and  arduous  rehearsal, 
the  spectacle  of  the  orchestra  applauding  the 
conductor  has  become  almost  a  convention. 

"  Trial  by  Jury"  having  been  produced,  as  we 
have  seen,  in  the  early  part  of  1875,  there  is  no 
further  production  to  record  until  two  years  after- 
wards. In  the  summer  of  1875  he  visited  Italy, 
where  his  companions  were  Sir  Coutts  and  Lady 
Lindsay,  to  whom  he  owes  the  pleasure  of  a  long 
and  close  friendship.  Writing  from  Cadennabia, 
on  August  25,  he  says:  "I  have  been  to  Milan 
at  last!  Visetti  was  there  at  the  station  to  receive 
me.  .  .  .  He  behaved  in  a  princely  manner  to 
me  the  whole  time,  treating  me  as  his  guest.  My 
visit  was  a  real  success,  and  I  am  very  glad  I 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  115 

went.  On  Monday  morning  after  breakfast  we 
went  out  and  called  on  Mazzucato  (the  director 
of  the  Conservatoire),  Ricordi,  the  publisher,  and 
Filippi,  the '  Davison  '  *  of  Italy.  .  .  .  We  went  to 
the  Conservatoire  to  listen  to  a  performance  by 
the  students.  Mazzucato  welcomed  me  with 
great  warmth.  To  my  extreme  gratification  he 
came  to  the  station  with  me  to  bid  me  farewell. 
I  cannot  speak  highly  or  warmly  enough  of 
Visetti.  He  was  kindness  itself,  and  almost  more 
gratified  than  myself  at  the  success  of  my  visit." 

Writing  again  from  the  hotel  at  Cadennabia  on 
the  Lago  di  Como:  "  The  heat  is  so  great  as  to 
make  it  almost  impossible  to  do  anything  but  sit 
about  without  movement  in  a  chair  until  the 
evening,  when  we  manage  to  saunter  out  a  little 
or  to  be  paddled  about  in  a  flat-bottomed  boat. 
Then  it  is  delicious,  absolutely  lovely.  The  still- 
ness of  the  water,  the  brilliant  moon,  throwing  its 
glittering  light  on  the  lake  and  making  a  long 
trail  of  little  diamonds,  the  mountains  all  round 
looking  grave  and  calm,  little  boats  filled  with 
men  and  women,  some  of  them  with  mandolins 

^  The  celebrated  critic  of  The  Times. 


ii6  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

and  singing  popular  melodies,  and  the  light  from 
the  villages  and  towns  dotted  round  the  lake 
contribute  to  form  a  scene  which  is  enchanting, 

and  unlike  anything  one  has  dreamed  of I 

have  an  advantage  that  not  every  Englishman 
has — i.e.,  of  being  here  in  the  summer.  People 
do  not  often  brave  the  heat,  and  consequently 
lose  the  magnificence  of  the  luxuriant  foliage 
and  the  beautiful  colours  and  lights,  which  can 
only  be  seen  at  this  time  of  the  year." 

Shortly  afterwards  Lady  Lindsay  sends  a 
sketch  to  Mrs.  Sullivan,  reproduced  in  these  pages. 
I  quote  the  letter  with  its  ironic  postscript:  "Dear 
Mrs.  Sullivan,  I  enclose  you  a  drawing,  by  which 
you  will  see  that  your  son  is  not  overtiring  him- 
self here.  He  spends  the  day,  and  so  do  we,  sit- 
ting on  the  balcony  in  rocking  chairs,  sometimes 
going  through  the  exertion  of  reading  a  novel." 
"  P.  S.  [in  Sullivan's  handwriting]  This  is  written 
forv!\^,  as  I  am  overworked(!),  and  consequently 
cannot  write  to-day." 

Perhaps  I  may  be  excused  for  quoting  another 
little  epistle  sent  soon  afterwards  from  Cologne. 
"  I  have  been  out  with  the  children;  we  went  to 
the  cathedral  and  heard  a  pretty  children's  serv- 


FREOERIC    SUT^LIVAX 

AS    TBB    JUDGE    IN     "tKIAL     BV    JUHV,'»     187S. 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  117 

ice.  It  is  a  blazing  hot  day,  and  the  cathedral 
was  so  peaceful  and  cool  it  did  me  good,  and  took 
me  out  of  the  world  for  a  time.  When  the  serv- 
ice began  the  organ  struck  up,  and  then  in  the 
far  distance  the  boys'  voices  were  heard  singing, 
and  they  came  nearer  and  nearer,  singing  all  the 
while.  The  result  was  I  burst  out  crying,  as  I 
always  do  at  children's  voices.  I  have  no  doubt 
that  the  music  was  weak,  and  the  boys'  voices 
execrable,  but  the  whole  thing  moved  me  and 
did  me  good." 

The  year  '']']  was  saddened  by  the  death  of  his 
brother  Fred  Sullivan,  who  died  on  January  18, 
aged  36.  His  cleverness  as  a  comedian  and  his 
unfailing  good  spirits  had  made  him  much  liked 
by  all  who  had  known  him,  and  during  his  brief 
career  as  an  actor  he  had  already  achieved  repu- 
tation. Best  known  to  the  public  for  his  perfect 
performance  of  the  Judge  in  "  Trial  by  Jury," 
he  was  a  skilled  musician  and  an  actor  of  great 
ability. 

It  was  during  the  distressing  three  weeks, 
mainly  occupied  in  watching  by  the  bedside  of 
the  elder  brother,  that  Sullivan  wrote  "  The  Lost 
Chord."     The  account  which  has  already  been 


ii8  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

given  in  Mr.  Willeby's  monograph  of  the  way  in 
which  it  was  written  is  accurate,  and  will,  I  hope, 
bear  repetition.  "  One  night — the  end  was  not 
very  far  off  then — while  his  sick  brother  had  for 
a  time  fallen  into  a  peaceful  sleep,  and  he  was 
sitting  as  usual  by  the  bedside,  he  chanced  to 
come  across  some  verses  of  Adelaide  Procter's 
with  which  he  had  five  years  previously  been 
much  struck.  He  had  then  tried  to  set  them  to 
music,  but  without  satisfaction  to  himself.  Now 
in  the  stillness  of  the  night  he  read  them  over 
again,  and  almost  as  he  did  so  he  conceived  their 
musical  equivalent.  A  sheet  of  music  paper  was 
at  hand,  and  he  began  to  write.  Slowly  the 
music  grew  and  took  shape,  until,  being  quite 
absorbed  in  it,  he  determined  to  finish  the  song. 
Even  if  in  the  cold  light  of  day  it  were  to  prove 
worthless,  it  would  at  least  have  helped  to  while 
away  the  hours  of  watching.  So  he  worked  on 
at  it.  As  he  progressed  he  felt  sure  that  this 
was  what  he  had  sought  for  and  failed  to  find  on 
the  occasion  of  his  first  attempt  to  set  the  words. 
In  a  short  time  it  was  complete,  and  not  long 
afterwards  in  the  publisher's  hands."  Thus  was 
written  "The    Lost  Chord,"  perhaps  the  most 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  119 

successful  song  of  modern  times,  at  all  events 
one  whose  sale  has,  up  to  now,  considerably 
exceeded  several  hundred  thousands. 

In  the  autumn  of  1877  the  composer's  activity 
was  manifested  in  two  directions.  In  the  first 
place  he  had  supplemented  his  list  of  incidental 
music  to  Shakespeare's  plays  with  the  music  for 
"  Henry  VIII.,"  first  produced  in  the  splendid 
revival  of  that  play  at  the  Princes  Theatre  by 
Charles  Calvert. 

On  the  strength  of  the  success  of  "  Trial  by 
Jury,"  and  in  the  confidence  inspired  by  hopes  of 
a  prosperous  collaboration  between  Gilbert  and 
Sullivan,  Mr.  D'Oyly  Carte  had  formed  a  small 
syndicate,  known  as  the  Comedy  Opera  Com- 
pany. Its  first  production  was  "  The  Sorcerer," 
first  played  at  the  Opera  Comique  on  Nov.  18, 
1877.  The  result  was  by  no  means  discouraging, 
for  it  drew  large  audiences  for  the  space  of  six 
months.  It  was  everywhere  regarded  as  "another 
attempt  to  establish  native  opera  as  a  legitimate 
and  permanent  institution  in  this  country,"  and 
while  the  public  was  delighted  at  the  rare  com- 
bination of  humorous  and  scholarly  music  with 
the  fun  of  a  skilful  libretto,  those  whose  duty  it 


I20  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

had  been  to  pay  attentive  ear  to  operatic  music 
from  foreign  sources  were  particularly  pleased 
with  the  clever  parodies  of  conventionality  in 
serious  opera  which  ran  through  "  The  Sorcerer," 
parodies  skilfully  interwoven  with  purely  origi- 
nal melody,  allied  to  good  taste,  fancifulness,  and 
command  over  orchestral  resources. 

Sir  Arthur  has  mentioned  the  difficulty  which 
he  experienced  in  the  beginning,  of  finding  any 
actor  or  actress  who  could  sing,  but  the  demand 
soon  created  a  supply,  and  "The  Sorcerer"  was 
responsible  for  the  introduction  of  Mr.  George 
Grossmith  and  Mr.  Rutland  Harrington  to  the 
stage. 

About  this  time  "  Lewis  Carroll"  wrote  to  him 
in  the  following  terms: — 

"  Dear  Sir, — I  thank  you  for  your  letter.  I 
thought  it  needless  to  trouble  you  with  any  par- 
ticulars till  I  knew  if  my  proposal  were  at  all 
possible.  And  now,  though  your  answer  gives 
little  or  no  ground  to  hope,  I  think  I  may  as  well, 
before  giving  up  all  hope,  tell  you  what  it  is  I 
want,  as  perhaps  it  might  change  your  view  of 
my  question.  I  am  the  writer  of  a  little  book  for 
children — 'Alice's  Adventures  in  Wonderland ' — 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  121 

which  has  proved  so  unexpectedly  popular  that 
the  idea  of  dramatising  it  has  been  several  times 
started.  If  that  is  ever  done,  I  shall  want  it  done 
in  the  best  possible  way,  sparing  no  expense,  and 
one  feature  I  should  want  would  be  good  music. 
So  I  thought  (knowing  your  charming  composi- 
tions) it  would  be  well  to  get  two  or  three  of  the 
songs  in  it  set  by  you,  to  be  kept  for  the  occasion 
(if  that  should  arrive)  of  its  being  dramatised;  we 
might  then  arrange  for  publishing  them  with 
music.     In  haste,  faithfully  yours, 

"  C.  L.  DODGSON. 

"  C  Lewis  Carroll.')" 

"Chestnuts,  Guilford,  March  31,  1877. 

"  My  Dear  Sir, — I  have  again  to  thank  you 
for  a  letter  which,  like  the  last,  is  nearly  final,  but 
just  leaves  the  gate  of  Hope  ajar.  Excuse  my 
troubling  you  with  more  questions,  but  I  should 
much  like  to  know  what  the  sum  is,  which  you 
say  you  thought  '  absurdly  extravagant '  for  the 
copyright  of  the  musical  setting  of  a  song,  and 
also  what  the  terms  would  be,  supposing  you  had 
a  *  royalty '  for  every  time  it  was  sung  in  public. 


122  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

For  my  own  part,  I  think  the  '  royalty '  system  the 
best  of  the  two,  usually,  but  the  other  has  the 
advantage  of  finality. 

"  You  speak  of  your  readiness  to  enter  on  the 
matter,  if  I  should  ever  carry  out  the  idea  of 
dramatising  *  Alice,'  but  that  is  just  what  I  don't 
want  to  wait  for.  We  might  wait  an  indefinite 
time,  and  then,  when  the  thing  was  settled,  have 
to  get  our  music  prepared  in  a  hurry,  and,  worse 
stiW,  you  might  not  then  be  able  or  willing  to  do 
it.  That  is  my  reason  for  wishing  to  get  some- 
thing ready  beforehand,  and  what  I  know  of  your 
music  is  so  delicious  (they  tell  me  I  have  not  a 
musical  ear,  so  my  criticism  is  valueless,  I  fear) 
that  I  should  like  to  secure  something  from  you 
now,  while  there  is  leisure  time  to  do  it  in.  Be- 
lieve me,  very  truly  yours, 

"  C.  L.  DODGSON." 

During  the  summer  of  'yj  he  is  once  more  in 
Paris,  and  in  making  brief  quotations  from  letters 
dated  from  Paris  and  elsewhere  my  apology  is 
that  they  are  particularly  interesting  in  so  far  as 
they  indicate  a  mental  attitude  toward  people 
whom  he  met,  and  contain  allusions  to  them. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  123 

"  It  seems  as  if  I  had  never  left  Paris.  When 
I  went  into  the  buffet  at  Victoria  last  night  to  get 
a  mouthful  of  cold  meat  before  starting  I  saw 
J.  S.  Forbes,  the  Chairman  of  the  L.  C.  and  D. 
Railway.  He  was  going  to  Paris,  so  he  took  me 
as  far  as  Calais  for  nothing,  shared  his  cabin  with 
me,  and  we  got  a  carriage  all  to  ourselves  to  Paris 
undisturbed.  It  was  luxury  combined  with 
economy." 

He  is  back  in  London  a  month  later.  "  Last 
night  was  the  dinner  at  the  Lindsays  to  Princess 

L .      It    was    very    pleasant.      To-day    the 

Princess  called  whilst  I  was  out  and  left  me  a 
beautiful  photograph  of  herself,  which  she  had 
promised  me.  It  was  very  kind  of  her,"  and 
"  Grove  says  he  does  not  wish  to  be  critical  in  the 
matter  of  tamarinds,  but  they  cut  out  like  pieces 
of  negro — hard  and  black.  I  thought  the  pot  I 
sent  him  was  in  beautiful  condition.  How  difficult 
it  is  to  please  all  mankind!" 

In  February  of  1878  he  writes:  "  Here  I  am  in 
*  Genoa  the  Proud,'  having  arrived  here  late  last 
night.  I  took  affecting  farewell  of  all  my  friends 
at  Nice  on  Friday,  and  on  Sunday  morning 
started  off  with  a  very  nice  fellow,  in  a  little  car- 


124  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

riage  with  two  capital  little  horses.  Silva^  went 
by  train  with  the  luggage,  and  we  drove  along  the 
far-famed  Cornice  road  which  runs  all  along  the 
Riviera  from  Nice  to  Genoa.  It  was  a  heavenly 
day,  and  I  never  enjoyed  anything  so  much  in  my 
life.  I  cannot  give  a  description,  but  refer  you  to 
Doctor  Antonio  for  it.  We  stayed  an  hour  and  a 
half  at  Mentone  for  lunch,  and  then  resumed  our 
journey  as  far  as  Bordighera,  where  we  stayed  the 
night.  Yesterday  morning  we  were  up  betimes 
and  on  our  way  again,  winding  for  miles  along  the 
picturesque  route,  mountains  on  one  side  of  us,  the 
Mediterranean  on  the  other,through  the  quaintest, 
dirtiest,  most  picturesque  old  towns  as  far  as 
Albenga.  There  we  parted  from  our  carriage,  it 
being  late  in  the  evening,  and  took  a  parliamen- 
tary train,  which  seemed  to  be  wandering  about 
listlessly,  on  to  Genoa.  .  .  .  The  thing  that  most 
interested  me  was  the  church  of  St.  Lorenzo,  the 
finest  here.  It  was  shut  up,  but  we  got  in  at  the 
side  door,  and  found  the  interior  magnificently  pre- 
pared for  the  funeral  mass  for  the  Pope,  the  day 
after  to-morrow.  All  the  pillars  and  other  stone 
work  were  covered  with  red  satin,  damask,  and 

1  Valet.  "* 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  125 

gold — a  great  catafalque  in  the  centre,  draped  in 
scarlet,  black,  white,  and  gold,  and  nothing  but 
scarlet,  black,  and  gold  everywhere.  The  effect 
was  magnificent." 


CHAPTER   VII 

AMERICAN  REMINISCENCES 
(1 87  8- 1 880) 

"H.M.S.  Pinafore" — Promenade  Concerts — "The  Pina- 
fore "  Fever  in  America — First  Visit  to  America — 
American  Reminiscences — American  Piracy  and  the 
"Pirates  of  Penzance." 

SINCE  1872  Sullivan  had  been  suffering  at 
intervals  from  an  agonising  malady.  It 
would  lie  dormant  for  a  considerable  period, 
and  then  rouse  itself  to  an  attack  which  would 
last  for  some  time.  "  H.M.S.  Pinafore  "  was  pro- 
duced at  the  Opera  Comique,  May  28,  1878.  It 
was  the  musician's  ill-fate  to  be  racked  with  pain 
during  the  period  when  this  delightful  opera  was 
written.  As  usual  it  had  to  be  written  against 
time,  and  it  says  much  for  the  dogged  courage  of 
the  composer  that  the  exquisite  and  jocund  music 
was  persisted  with  in  the  intervals  of  the  most 
acute  suffering 

Strangely  enough,  "  H.M.S.  Pinafore,"  eventu- 

126 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  127 

ally  so  tremendously  popular,  at  first  failed  to 
attract.  There  was  the  crowded  and  enthusiastic 
audience  on  the  first  night,  and  the  press  cried 
approval;  of  course  well-meant  suggestions  ap- 
peared here  and  there  to  the  effect  that  "  our 
representative  English  composer  should  confine 
himself  to  more  serious  work."  Truth  to  tell, 
the  "business"  done  at  the  theatre  became  so 
unremunerative  that  the  management  decided 
to  withdraw  "  H.M.S.  Pinafore"  not  many  weeks 
after  production. 

At  that  time  Sullivan  was  conductor  of  the 
Covent  Garden  Promenade  Concerts,  and  one 
night  he  put  into  the  programme  a  brilliant 
arrangement  by  Hamilton  Clarke  of  the  "  Pina- 
fore" music,  for  the  orchestra  and  military  band. 
Although  the  piece  was  running  to  poor  houses 
at  the  time,  and  was  on  the  eve  of  withdrawal, 
this  selection  from  the  music  at  the  concerts 
created  quite  a  sensation.  The  selection  was 
invariably  encored,  and  parts  of  it  sometimes 
played  over  two  or  three  times,  before  the 
audience  would  permit  the  programme  to  be 
proceeded  with.  It  was  apparently  as  the  result 
of  this  that  the  receipts  at  the  Opera  Comique 


128  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

gradually  crept  up,  and  that  nearly  two  years 
afterwards  "H.M.S.  Pinafore"  was  still  in  the 
bill  and  flourishing  hugely.  Instead  of  failing 
dismally,  it  had  the  stage  for  seven  hundred 
nights.  Meanwhile  the  piece  had  become  the 
"rage"  throughout  America,  about  which  there 
will  be  much  to  say  presently. 

The  Promenade  Concerts,  at  one  time  under 
the  sway  of  Jullien  at  the  time  of  which  I  am 
writing  —  August,  1878  —  were  controlled  by 
Messrs.  Gatti.  The  orchestra  numbered  eighty 
of  the  best  English  players,  and  one  of  the 
papers,  commenting  on  the  fact  that  "  Mr.  Arthur 
Sullivan  is  the  conductor,"  remarked  that  "it  is  the 
first  time  that  he  has  assumed  such  an  office  at 
entertainments  of  this  kind.  .  .  .  The  man  who 
has  given  us  not  only  '  Cox  and  Box,'  the  '  Con- 
trabandista,'  '  Trial  by  Jury,'  '  The  Sorcerer,'  and 
*  H.M.S.  Pinafore,'  each  in  its  way  unsurpassed, 
but  also  the  'Tempest'  music,  '  Kenilworth,'  the 
'Symphony  in  E  Minor,'  the  overture  '  In  Memo- 
riam,'the  'Te  Deum'  to  commemorate  the  recov- 
ery of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  and  last  but  not 
least,  such  an  oratorio  as  '  The  Light  of  the 
World,'  is  no  common  labourer  in  the  field   of 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  129 

art,  and  merits  all  the  distinction  that  may  be 
conferred  upon  him." 

Taking  the  lighter  side,  I  have  included  in  the 
illustrations  the  sketches  produced  in  the  Sport- 
ing and  Dramatic  News  of  the  time,  anent  which 
"The  Captious  Critic"  remarked,  "It  was,  I 
believe,  the  custom  of  at  least  a  few  of  the 
Chapel  Royal  choristers — those  little  Bee-flaters 
who  dispense  sweet  music  for  the  saving  of 
high-born  souls — to  proceed  from  St.  James'  to 
Hungerford  market  and  waste  their  substance 
in  the  consumption  of  Gatti's  far-famed  ices. 
Amongst  these  ardent  devotees  of  Gatti  were 
little  Arthur  and  Alfred.  Their  pocket  money 
was  quickly  consumed  in  the  form  of  the  cool  and 
refreshing  ice.  These  two  little  boys  are  grown 
up,  and  are  now  receiving  those  pennies  spent  in 
reckless  frigidity  back  from  the  coffers  of  the 
Gatti  family,  for  they  are  none  other  than  Mr. 
Arthur  Sullivan  and  Mr.  Alfred  Cellier,  the 
conductors  of  the  Promenade  Concerts." 

In  America  "H.M.S.  Pinafore"  had  caught 
on,  and  raged  furiously.  In  London  it  had  been 
successful  beyond  anything  of  the  kind,  but  in 
the  States  it  created  the  tornado-like  furore  for 


I30  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

which,  amongst  many  other  big  things,  that  great 
nation  is  celebrated.  It  was  not  an  uncommon 
thing  for  one  individual  to  have  seen  the  piece, 
say,  a  dozen  times;  church  choirs  added  it  to  their 
repertoire;  thousands  of  sturdy  Puritans  who  had 
never  been  inside  a  theatre  before  went  to  see 
one  or  other  of  the  performances.  It  is  on  record 
that  {iniserabile  dichi)  a  hundred  thousand  barrel 
organs  were  constructed  to  play  nothing  else! 
For  the  season  it  was  found  hardly  worth  while 
to  run  anything  in  opposition  to  it,  and  the 
spectacle  was  presented  of  every  theatre  and 
concert  company  of  importance  in  the  big  cities, 
producing  the  same  piece!  In  one  of  the  sketches 
produced  in  an  American  paper,  in  which  posters 
are  seen  affixed  to  a  wall,  the  notion  is  by 
no  means  exaggerated.  "  Academy  of  Music. 
Colonel  Mapleson's  troupe, 'Pinafore' "!  "Stadt 
Theatre.  The  pretty  comedy  'Von  Pinaforen.' 
Pumpernickel,  Kaiserlich  und  Limburger." 
"Grand  Concert!  Signora  lima  di  Marska  will 
sing  the  principal  arias  of  '  H.M.S.  Pinafore'"! 
and  so  on.  For  instance,  here  is  one  of  the  many 
similar  notices  given  in  all  seriousness:  "The 
Church  Choir  '  Pinafore  '  Company  has  prefaced 


HIS    LIFE    STOE.Y  131 

their  'Pinafore'  performance  with  the'Gloria'  from 
Mozart's  'Twelfth  Mass,'  and  Handel's  'Halle- 
lujah Chorus.'  "  Some  of  the  libretto,  as  catch 
phrases,  "What,  never? — Well,  hardly  ever!" 
must  have  become  deadly.  It  is  related  that  one 
editor  was  compelled  to  forbid  their  use  by  his 
staff  on  pain  of  dismissal.  "  It  has  occurred 
twenty  times  in  as  many  articles  in  yesterday's 
edition,"  he  sorrowfully  said  to  them  on  one 
occasion.  "  Never  let  me  see  it  used  again." 
"What,  never?"  was  the  unanimous  question. 
"Well,  hardly  ever"  replied  the   wretched  man. 

"  Dot  '  Pinafore '  expression  vas  a  noosance," 
remarked  a  Teutonic  gentleman  to  a  genial 
coadjutor.  "Auf  you  tole  a  veller  sometings, 
he  speaks  noding  von  blame  English.  He  say, 
'Vot,  hardly,  sometimes  nefer!'  Vot  kind  of 
language  is  dose?" 

The  ironic  form  does  not  preclude  the  fact  that 
the  following  statement  was  within  the  truth: 
"At  present  there  are  forty-two  companies  play- 
ing '  Pinafore'  about  the  country.  Companies 
formed  after  6  p.m.  yesterday  are  not  included." 
Philadelphia  boasted  a  "coloured"  "  Pinafore" 
company,  and  in  Boston  "Pinafore"  is  announced 


132  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

to  be  given  at  the  Music  Hall  on  such-and-such 
date,  when  "the  leading  characters  will  be  sung 
by  prominent  soloists  of  the  Catholic  choirs  of 
the  city,  and  the  chorus  will  consist  of  fifty  voices 
from  various  Catholic  churches." 

Meantime,  there  were  two  facts  which  were 
not  likely  to  escape  the  notice  of  Messrs.  Arthur 
Sullivan  and  W.  S.  Gilbert.  On  the  one  hand, 
"their  attention  had  been  called"  to  the  popu- 
larity which  the  piece  was  creating  on  the  other 
side  of  the  water;  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
although  its  popularity  meant  the  transference 
(in  the  States)  of  many  hundreds  of  thousands 
of  dollars,  they  were  quite  cognisant  of  the  fact, 
without  having  their  attention  called  to  it,  that 
this  unique  popularity  had  not  produced  one 
half-penny  for  the  benefit  of  the  joint  authors  of 
the  production. 

Of  course  there  was  no  international  copyright, 
but  yet  they  felt  something  might  be  done.  It 
might  well  be  that  the  American  managers  and 
the  English  authors  would  be  unable  to  make  any 
compromise  in  their  views,  which  were  in  direct 
opposition  in  regard  to  the  interpretation  of  meum 
and  tuum,  but  they  held  one  good  card  and  they 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  133 

determined  to  play  it.  They  would  take  over 
their  own  people  to  perform  the  operas.  The 
opera  in  America,  although  so  successful,  was 
being  played  after  a  strange  fashion,  with  many 
sins  of  omission  and  commission.  The  lesser  of 
the  American  companies  had  turned  the  comic 
opera  into  a  weird  music-hall  sketch  of  a  nature 
which  beggared  description.  The  libretto  had 
been  tampered  with,  so-called  topical  songs  had 
been  interpolated,  and  many  other  inartistic 
horrors  had  been  perpetrated.  The  music,  too, 
more  particularly  in  regard  to  its  orchestration, 
was  being  treated  quite  out  of  accord  with  the 
intentions  of  the  composer. 

Accordingly,  in  November,  1879,  accompanied 
by  Mr.  D'Oyly  Carte  and  the  late  Alfred  Cellier, 
they  left  for  America.  They  also  took  with  them 
Blanche  Roosevelt,  who  had  been  singer  at  the 
Covent  Garden  Opera  under  the  name  of  Rosa- 
vella.  Blanche  Roosevelt  went  with  them  as  the 
principal  soprano  of  the  "  Pinafore "  company. 
She  sang  fairly  well,  but  what  success  she 
achieved  was  mainly  due  to  her  extraordinary 
beauty.  She  proved  of  little  use  in  the  part  of 
Josephine,  which  had  not  been  written  for  her 


134  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

voice,  but  made  a  very  successful  appearance 
subsequently  as  Mabel  in  "  The  Pirates  of  Pen- 
zance," more  especially  as  the  music  for  Mabel  in 
the  first  act  had  been  written  with  a  view  to 
her  interpretation.  The  rest  of  the  principals 
followed  them  to  America  shortly  afterwards. 

The  original  rendering  of  the  "  Pinafore"  was 
produced  at  the  Fifth  Avenue.  One  might  have 
thought  that  the  "New  Yorkers"  by  this  time 
would  have  grown  tired  of  the  piece,  and,  indeed, 
one  or  two  New  York  papers,  forgetful  that 
prophecy  is  the  most  gratuitous  form  of  error, 
said  as  much — and  more;  but  as  a  matter  of  fact 
the  further  production  created  quite  a  sensation. 
In  what  way  the  production  differed  from  the 
American  version  can  be  deduced  from  some  of 
the  references  made  to  it.  The  following  descrip- 
tion is  quite  instructive: 

"Last  evening,"  writes  one  reporter,  '"  H.M.S. 
Pinafore '  was  under  command  of  its  builders. 
Mr.  Sullivan  conducted  in  the  orchestra,  and  the 
master-hand  was  clearly  discernible  in  the  result. 
It  seemed  already  as  though  human  ingenuity 
had  been  exhausted  to  provide  appropriate  busi- 
ness for  the  opera,  and  that  everything  thinkable 


liL-VXCME   KOOSJilViiLT 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  135 

had  been  thought  of.  But  last  night's  perform- 
ance was  everywhere  studded  with  new  points. 
When  the  scene  opened,  the  sailors  were  all  seen 
at  work,  flemishing  down  the  ropes,  and  attend- 
ing to  various  ship's  duties,  while  the  whole  was 
under  the  supervision  of  the  busy  and  important 
Little  Midshipmite. 

"  This  gave  an  animation  to  the  first  scene  that 
it  generally  lacks.  Practicable  shrouds  were  set, 
with  sailors  clambering  up  and  down,  and  the 
chorus  was  skilfully  divided,  some  on  the  gun 
deck,  and  some  on  the  quarter  deck,  so  as  to 
destroy  the  usual  unpleasant  stiffness  in  the 
grouping. 

"  But  the  really  noticeable  difference  in  the 
interpretation  was  the  orchestration.  There  was 
breadth,  colour,  and  tone,  together  with  a  har- 
monious blending  with  the  vocalism  which  was 
utterly  wanting  in  what  may  be  called  the  home- 
made '  Pinafores.' " 

The  authors  were  called  before  the  curtain  and, 
a  speech  being  demanded,  Mr.  Gilbert  thanked 
the  audience  for  the  cordial  reception  accorded  to 
their  "little  work."  "  It  is  not,"  Mr.  Gilbert  said, 
"  a  new  work."     It  had  indeed  been  intimated  to 


136  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

him  that  it  had  been  performed  here  before,  and 
he  begged  to  assure  the  audience  that  its  present 
production  was  not  prompted  by  a  desire  to 
challenge  comparison  with  other  versions,  but 
because  he  and  Mr.  Sullivan  thought  it  would  be 
interesting  to  the  audience  to  see  the  author's 
and  composer's  idea  of  how  the  work  should  be 
performed.  "  It  has  been  our  purpose,"  he 
added,  "  to  produce  something  that  should  be 
innocent  but  not  imbecile." 

From  this  point  I  cannot  do  better  than  con- 
tinue the  narrative  of  the  composer's  experiences 
in  America  in  his  own  words. 

"  Of  course  Gilbert  and  myself  had  been  kept 
informed  of  the  unique  business  which  'Pinafore' 
was  doing  in  America,  and  our  visit  was  prompted 
by  the  notion  that,  as  the  authors  of  the  piece,  we 
ought  to  profit  by  it.  Meanwhile,  we  did  not 
trust  to  the  '  Pinafore'  opera  to  do  us  any  mate- 
rial monetary  good  in  America;  we  determined 
to  produce  our  next  opera  in  the  States  first  and 
in  Great  Britain  afterwards.  The  Americans 
acknowledged  that  the  author  had  a  right  in  his 
unpublished  work  in  the  same  way  that  he  could 
lay  claim  to  his  own  personal  apparel  or  any  other 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  137 

form  of  property,  and  only  lost  his  prerogative 
after  it  had  been  published.  So  all  we  could  do 
was  to  follow  the  course  I  have  indicated  and 
produce  our  piece  in  America  first  and  get  our 
own  company  well  under  way  before  others 
could  bring  out  their  imitations.  With  this  object 
in  view  we  took  with  us  the  half-completed  opera 
of  the  '  Pirates  of  Penzance.'  I  had  only  com- 
posed the  second  act,  without  the  orchestration, 
in  England.  Soon  after  my  arrival  in  America 
I  wrote  the  first,  and  scored  the  whole  opera. 
We  produced  it  at  the  Fifth  Avenue  Theatre  on 
New  Year's  Eve — December  31,  1879." 

No  such  stage  management  had  been  witnessed 
or  such  music  heard  on  the  light  opera  stage 
before.  The  whole  piece  was  a  revelation  to  the 
theatrical  world  in  America,  and  its  success  was 
immediate  and  prodigious. 

"Of  course,  at  that  time,  there  was  no  copyright 
between  the  two  countries,  and  so  we  were  com- 
pelled to  retain  possession  of  the  whole  work  in 
manuscript.  To  have  stolen  that  from  us  would 
have  made  the  thief  amenable  under  the  common 
law,  but  if  we  had  published  it,  and  had  proceeded 
against  any  thief  who  had  made  use  of  the  opera, 


138  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

we  should  have  had  to  take  action  against  him 
under  the  statute  law,  and  should  have  failed. 
The  moment  any  portion  of  the  opera  appeared  in 
print  it  was  open  to  any  one  in  the  States  either 
to  publish,  produce,  or  do  what  he  liked  with  it. 
Apart,  however,  from  the  absence  of  interna- 
tional copyright,  the  law  concerning  artistic  ques- 
tions was  involved  and  uncertain,  and  in  a  very 
unsatisfactory  state  altogether.  Keeping  the 
libretto  and  music  in  manuscript  did  not  settle 
the  difficulty,  as  it  was  held  by  some  judges  that 
theatrical  representation  was  tantamount  to 
publication,  so  that  any  member  of  the  audience 
who  managed  to  take  down  the  libretto  in  short- 
hand, for  instance,  and  succeeded  in  memorising 
the  music  was  quite  at  liberty  to  produce  his 
own  version  of  it.  This  made  matters  exciting 
for  us,  although  the  excitement  was  far  from  be- 
ing a  pleasant  one.  We  kept  a  sharp  look-out, 
and  if  any  one  in  the  theatre  was  observed  tak- 
ing notes  or  anything  of  the  kind  the  note-taker 
was  promptly  turned  out. 

"  Yet  it  very  often  happened,  and  many  other 
dodges  were  practiced.  It  is  impossible  to 
memorise  orchestration,  and  consequently  some 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  139 

of  the  members  of  my  orchestra  were  bribed  to 
hand  over  the  band  parts.  Incidents  of  this  sort 
became  of  constant  occurrence.  I  remember 
that  I  was  dining  one  night  with  Mr.  Sam  Barlow, 
the  George  Lewis  of  New  York,  when  my  copy- 
ist came  from  the  theatre  to  see  me,  positively 
livid  with  excitement.  He  had  made  the  dis- 
covery that  one  of  the  orchestra  had  been 
offered  a  bribe  of  one  hundred  dollars  if  he 
would  supply  the  first   violin   part  of  the  opera." 

Here  it  may  be  well  to  interrupt  the  narrative 
for  a  moment  to  explain  to  those  unacquainted 
with  such  technical  matters  that  the  "  principal 
first  violin  "  part  is  the  leader's  part,  and  besides 
containing  the  part  for  the  first  violin  it  has  the 
necessary  cues  to  the  rest  of  the  orchestration, 
so  that  the  principal  first  violinist  could  conduct 
from  it  if  it  were  necessary. 

**  However,  notwithstanding  the  absence  of 
copyright  law,  we  did  very  well  in  America,  as  is 
evinced  by  the  fact  that  Stetson  offered  us;^5ooo 
down  for  the  right  to  play  the  piece  for  a  short 
time  in  Boston,  an  offer  which  we  declined,  pre- 
ferring to  send  our  own  company,  and  taking 
the  risk  of  making  what  we  could  out  of  it.     We 


I40  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

sent  out  a  great  number  of  companies  on  the 
road  to  different  towns  in  the  States.  Some  of 
the  tours  showed  a  slight  loss,  and  others  a  con- 
siderable profit,  and,  taking  it  all  round,  we  did 
excellently  well,  more  especially  when  one  re- 
members that  our  attempt  to  retain  possession 
of  our  own  property  involved  us  in  a  guerrilla 
warfare.  On  the  other  hand,  before  producing 
anything  in  America,  it  was  necessary,  in  order 
to  comply  with  English  copyright  law,  to  have  a 
bogus  performance  in  this  country.  This  was 
always  carried  out  in  some  out-of-the-way  village, 
and  arranged  with  great  secrecy. 

"  Apart  from  the  activity  of  the  piratical  peo- 
ple of  those  days,  I  was  most  hospitably  treated 
everywhere,  and  I  liked  the  American  people 
immensely. 

"  Meanwhile,  in  England,  '  Pinafore '  had  been 
running  all  the  time  at  the  Opera  Comique,  and 
when  we  came  back  to  England  in  March  (1880), 
we  put  '  The  Pirates  of  Penzance '  into  re- 
hearsal, and  produced  it  at  the  Opera  Comique. 
Having  had  the  cream  out  of  America,  so  to 
speak,  the  manuscript  of  the  music  and  libretto 
was  put  into  the   hands   of  the   printer,  and  the 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  141 

opera  was  published.  From  that  moment,  of 
course,  the  piece  was  free  to  be  played  through- 
out America. 

"  With  the  subsequent  operas,  '  Patience,* 
*  lolanthe,'  and  so  on,  we  tried  all  sorts  of  expe- 
dients to  preserve  our  own  rights  in  our  own 
work.  For  example,  it  had  been  laid  down  in 
the  Massachusetts  circuit — the  most  important 
legal  circuit  in  the  States — and  in  accordance 
with  a  very  unfortunate  precedent  in  the  British 
law  of  the  time,  that  the  pianoforte  arrangement 
of  a  work  should  be  regarded  as  a  separate  copy- 
right and  a  separate  property.  It  was  a  ridicu- 
lous and  an  indefensible  notion,  but,  unfortu- 
nately! it  had  been  so  decided  in  an  important 
case — Boosey  v.  Cramer,  on  this  side  of  the 
water. 

"  However,  we  decided  to  act  on  the  Ameri- 
can judgment  to  which  I  have  referred,  and  in- 
duced an  American  citizen  to  come  over  here 
from  the  States  to  make  the  pianoforte  arrange- 
ments of  the  score  here,  and  by  means  of  a  sort 
of  silly  fiction,  I  allowed  him  to  use  the  vocal 
parts  of  my  opera  as  being  part  of  his  pianoforte 
arrangement  of  the  score.     He  then  copyrighted, 


142  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

in  his  own  name,  the  pianoforte  arrangement  of 
my  work,  and  it  became  his  property,  with  the 
private  understanding  that  he  should  subsequent- 
ly hand  it  to  me  for  a  small  monetary  considera- 
tion. This  was  a  very  roundabout  way  of  doing 
business,  but  we  thought  that  by  this  means,  the 
pianoforte  and  vocal  parts  being  legally  the 
property  of  an  American  citizen,  we  should  be 
able  to  hold  on  to  it."  Nevertheless,  the  copy- 
right in  question  was  promptly  infringed,  and 
when  an  injunction  was  sought,  the  judges  in  the 
same  circuit  (Massachusetts)  gave  a  verdict 
against  us,  thus  stultifying  their  own  previous 
decision.  It  seemed  to  be  their  opinion  that  a 
free  and  independent  American  citizen  ought 
not  to  be  robbed  of  his  right  of  robbing  some- 
body else. 

"  We  tried  similar  expedients  with  two  or  three 
of  the  subsequent  operas,  but  although  the  com- 
panies we  sent  out  had  a  great  vogue  in 
America,  the  methods  adopted  for  preservation 
of  copyright  did  not  really  pay,  mainly  owing  to 
the  trouble  and  expense  of  the  law-suits  in  which 
we  became  involved  in  the  effort  to  protect  our 
rights. 


HIS   LIFE  STORY  143 

"All  we  could  do,  as  I  have  indicated,  was  to 
send  out  our  companies  before  the  operas  were 
published,  and  to  refrain  from  publishing  in  Great 
Britain  until  after  the  operas  had  been  produced 
in  America.  As  soon  as  the  work  was  in  print, 
any  action  that  we  might  take  came  under  Statute 
Law,  but  as  long  as  it  remained  in  manuscript  the 
action  came  under  Common  Law,  and  any  one 
attempting  to  deprive  us  of  the  manuscript  was 
no  less  amenable  to  the  law  than  any  other  thief, 
who,  for  example,  might  try  to  get  hold  of  one's 
purse  or  one's  handkerchief. 

"My  second  visit  to  the  States  was  made  in 
1885,  when  I  travelled  alone,  having  no  other 
purpose  than  the  settlement  of  some  private 
family  affairs.  This  was  just  after  '  The  Mikado ' 
had  come  out  in  England,  and  we  had  the 
inevitable  law-suit  in  America  in  regard  to  it.  It 
was  an  important  case,  and  our  counsel,  who 
fought  splendidly  for  us,  is  now  the  American 
Ambassador  in  England — Mr.  Choate." 

It  should  not  go  unrecorded  here  that  in  regard 
to  "The  Mikado,"  Mr.  D'Oyly  Carte  carried 
through  a  counter-movement  against  the  would- 
be  pirate  on  the  other  side  of  the  water.     It  was 


144  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

an  effort  which  must  be  almost  unique  in  theat- 
rical history. 

I  have  had  a  fairly  full  account  of  it  given  to 
me  from  different  sources,  but  I  doubt  if  I  can  do 
better  than  quote  the  explanation  given  by  an 
American  paper  at  the  time,  as  the  report  is 
sufficiently  detailed  and  absolutely  accurate.  It 
is  not  often  that  such  a  romantic  element  is 
imported  into  the  business  side  of  theatrical 
enterprise. 

"The  English  public,"  remarked  the  paper  in 
question,  "has  heard  a  good  deal  about  the 
local  warfare  which  has  been  waged  over  '  The 
Mikado'  in  America.  Some  may  remember  that 
after  the  enormous  success  of  the  opera  in  London 
two  American  managers  entered  into  treaty  with 
Mr.  D'Oyly  Carte  for  the  production  of  the  piece  in 
New  York.  These  were  Mr.  Stetson,  of  the  Fifth 
Avenue  Theatre,  and  Mr.  Duff,  of  The  Standard. 
Mr.  Carte  finally  closed  with  Mr.  Stetson,  and, 
annoyed  by  the  success  of  his  rival,  Mr.  Duff 
resolved  to  pirate  the  piece  and  to  play  it  in  New 
York  in  advance  of  Mr.  Carte,  and,  of  course,  in 
advance  of  the  author  and  composer.  Then  com- 
menced a  campaign  between  the    English   and 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  145 

American  managers.  Mr.  Carte  had  arranged  to 
produce  'The  Mikado'  at  the  Fifth  Avenue 
Theatre  about  the  middle  of  October  (1885), but 
when  he  ascertained  that  it  was  Mr.  Duff's  inten- 
tion to  forestall  him  by  beginning  his  unauthorised 
performance  in  August  Mr.  Carte  decided  to  steal 
a  march  on  his  opponent  by  placing  all  possible 
impediments  in  the  way  of  carrying  out  his 
scheme,  and  by  so  arranging  his  own  plans  that 
the  first  performance  of  '  The  Mikado'  which  the 
New  Yorkers  witnessed  should  be  the  genuine 
and  authorised  one.  Mr.  Duff  had  the  advantage 
in  commencing  hostilities  of  being  on  the  scene  of 
action  in  New  York,  whereas  Mr.  Carte  was  well 
aware  that  if  he  made  preparations  to  take  his 
artists  over  to  America  the  fact  would  at  once  be 
cabled  to  Mr.  Duff  in  New  York,  who  would  then 
have  about  ten  days'  start  in  bringing  out  the 
opera  with  his  own  company.  It  was  obvious 
that  the  expedition  must  be  organised  secretly, 
and  what  the  difficulties  were  in  the  way  of  such  a 
course  any  one  can  imagine  who  reflects  on  the 
number  of  different  persons  who  have  to  be  taken 
into  confidence  before  a  large  opera  company  can 
be  got  together  and  made  ready  to  start  for  a 


146  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

foreign  shore.  At  this  juncture  of  affairs  Mr. 
Carte  discovered  that  Mr.  Duff  was  attempting  to 
obtain  in  London  Japanese  costumes  in  imitation 
of  those  used  at  the  Savoy  Theatre,  so  Mr. 
Carte  immediately  proceeded  to  buy  up  all  the 
Japanese  costumes  of  any  value  in  London  and 
also  in  Paris.  Several  hundred  costly  costumes 
were  bought  up  in  this  way,  but  they  could  easily 
be  utilised  for  the  various  companies  in  England, 
Australia,  and  America. 

"  All  the  members  of  the  company  were  re- 
hearsed under  the  impression  that  they  were 
destined  to  start  on  a  tour  in  the  English  prov- 
inces, but  one  day  Mr.  Carte  privately  requested 
them  to  assemble  at  the  Savoy  Theatre.  Here 
he  addressed  them  in  a  body,  told  them  the  whole 
story  of  Mr.  Duff's  proposed  piracy,  and  finally 
told  them  that  it  was  impossible  to  rely  on  the 
protection  of  American  law  in  the  matter,  in  the 
absence  of  any  international  Copyright  Act;  the 
only  practical  plan  was  to  get  the  play,  company, 
costumes,  &c.,  out  to  New  York  so  secretly  that 
no  information  of  his  intentions  could  reach  the 
city  before  their  arrival.  They  would  have  to 
sail  in  two  days. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  147 

"The  company  left  London  on  August  7  by 
midnight  train  and  reached  Liverpool  in  the 
early  morning !  They  breakfasted  together  at  a 
small  commercial  hotel  where  none  of  them  were 
known  and  were  then  conveyed  by  special  tug  to 
the  Cunard  s.  s.  Aurania.  She  was  to  start  that 
afternoon  and  when  the  passenger  tender  was 
seen  approaching  all  the  company  retired  to  their 
cabins  and  shut  themselves  in,  so  that  they  might 
not  be  seen  and  recognised  by  any  persons  who 
were  coming  out  to  bid  farewell  to  their  friends. 
The  berths  of  the  members  of  the  company  were 
all  booked  under  fictitious  names,  and  Mr.  Carte 
was  entered  on  the  ship's  books  as  Mr.  Henry 
Chapman.  On  the  arrival  of  the  vessel  in  New 
York  harbour,  Mr.  Carte's  agent  came  out  to 
meet  it  with  the  pleasing  information  that  nothing 
was  yet  known  about  it  in  New  York.  Great 
was  the  consternation  of  Mr.  Duff  when  it  became 
known  that  the  enemy,  supposed  to  be  three 
thousand  miles  away,  was  actually  in  the  citadel. 
The  outcome  of  this  strategic  movement  was  a 
complete  defeat  for  Mr.  Duff,  as  *  The  Mikado  ' 
company  drew  all  the  city  to  the  first  night 
performance,   whilst    Mr.   Duff's   company   had 


148        SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

hardly  begun  their  preliminary  rehearsals.  The 
success  of 'The  Mikado,' produced  at  the  Fifth 
Avenue  on  August  19,  was  immediate  and 
triumphant." 

"  It  was  on  the  occasion  of  my  second  visit," 
Sir  Arthur  tells  me,  amused  at  the  recollection, 
"  that  I  was  compelled  to  slip  out  of  the  States 
to  avoid  being  arrested!  Merely  to  annoy  me, 
and  not  because  there  was  the  slightest  excuse 
for  requiring  my  testimony,  a  ne  exeat  order  had 
been  issued  against  me  to  secure  me  as  a  witness. 
This  would  have  necessitated  my  remaining  in 
the  country  for  some  time.  It  would  have  proved 
exceedingly  awkward  for  me  to  have  remained 
longer  in  the  States,  dawdling  about  doing 
nothing.  Of  course  it  was  their  intention  to 
give  me  this  inconvenience.  However,  as  it 
had  been  given  out  that  I  intended  leaving 
by  a  certain  Cunard  steamer  which  was  being 
watched,  I  slipped  away  by  a  German  Lloyd 
steamer  the  day  before." 

Harking  back  to  the  occasion  of  his  first  visit 
to  America,  Sir  Arthur  continues:  '*  I  ought  to 
add  that,  while  we  were  there,  the  Americans 
whom  we  met  were  exceedingly  kind  and  made 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  149 

a  great  deal  of  us  personally.  While  I  was  there 
in  1879  I  conducted  a  performance  of  my 
oratorio,  '  The  Prodigal  Son,'  at  Boston,  at  the 
invitation  of  their  oldest  and  best  society,  the 
Handel  and  Haydn  Society,  the  equivalent  to 
our  Sacred  Harmonic  Society  over  here. 

"  At  Baltimore  they  were  good  enough  to  ask 
me  to  conduct  a  complimentary  concert  consist- 
ing of  a  selection  from  my  own  works,  and  I  re- 
member that  it  was  in  the  course  of  that  concert 
that  a  cablegram  was  handed  to  me  offering  me 
the  conductorship  of  the  Leeds  Festival." 

"  Speaking  of  my  own  experience  of  orches- 
tras in  the  States,  they  certainly  did  very  well.  I 
found  that  in  the  perso7inel  of  the  orchestras  the 
German  element  largely  preponderated,  the 
balance  being  almost  entirely  made  up  of  bands- 
men who  had  deserted  from  the  British  army. 
The  German  element  was  so  strong,  however, 
that  I  found  it  necessary  at  the  rehearsals  to 
speak  to  the  orchestra  in  German. 

"  Your  question  about  the  standard  of  excel- 
lence attained  by  the  orchestras  in  America  re- 
minds me  of  the  one  big  game  of  bluff  which  I 
perpetrated.    We  had  been  rehearsing  '  The  Pi- 


I50  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

rates,'  and  it  was  but  two  or  three  days  before 
the  performance  that  the  whole  band  went  '  on 
strike.'  They  explained  that  the  music  was  not 
ordinary  operetta  music,  but  more  like  grand 
opera.  Perhaps  it  is  necessary  to  explain  that  their 
method  is  to  charge  according  to  scale,  so  much 
per  week  for  entr'acte  music,  with  an  ascending 
scale  for  operetta,  and  so  on.  Had  they  made 
their  complaint  earlier  no  doubt  matters  could 
have  been  arranged  satisfactorily,  but  their  going 
'  on  strike '  for  higher  salaries  at  the  very  last 
moment  in  this  way  appealed  to  me  as  being  a 
very  mean  thing  to  do.  Under  these  circum- 
stances I  felt  there  was  nothing  for  it  but  to 
grapple  as  best  I  could  with  the  emergency.  I 
called  the  band  together  and  told  them  that  I 
was  much  flattered  by  the  compliment  they  had 
paid  to  my  music,  but  I  declined  to  submit  to 
their  demands.  I  went  on  to  say  that  the  con- 
certs at  Covent  Garden  which  I  conducted  had 
just  been  concluded,  and  the  orchestra  there, 
which  was  the  finest  in  England,  had  very  little 
to  do  before  the  opera  season  began,  and  that  I 
was  certain  that,  on  receiving  a  cable  to  that  ef- 
fect, they  would  come  over  to  America  to  oblige 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  151 

me  for  little  more  than  their  expenses.  In  the 
meantime  I  told  them  I  should  go  on  with  the 
opera,  playing  the  pianoforte  myself,  with  my 
friend  Mr.  Alfred  Cellier  at  the  harmonium,  and 
that  when  the  Covent  Garden  orchestra  did 
come,  we  should  have  a  very  much  finer  band 
than  we  could  get  in  New  York. 

"  Then  I  went  to  my  friend,  the  manager  of 
the  New  York  Herald,  and  asked  him  to  write  an 
article  in  the  shape  of  an  interview  with  me  on 
the  subject,  which  he  did,  and  I  launched  out 
freely  with  my  opinions.  The  upshot  of  it  all 
was  that  the  band  gave  in,  and  everything  went 
along  smoothly.  Of  course,  the  idea  of  getting 
the  Covent  Garden  band  over  was  hardly  less 
absurd  than  the  ludicrous  idea  of  using  the  piano- 
forte and  harmonium  in  a  big  theatre,  but,  fortu- 
nately, public  opinion  was  with  me,  and  my  one 
game  of  bluff  met  with  entire  success. 

"  I  was  much  struck  with  the  casual  way  many 
matters  seemed  to  be  done  in  the  out-of-the-way 
States.  One  day,  when  I  had  been  wandering 
about  in  the  mountains,  I  drove  up  to  a  place 
.where  there  was  a  little  station,  and  I  said  to  the 
darky  porter,  '  When  does  the   next  train  go  to 


152  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Sacramento?'  Judge  of  my  astonishment  when 
he  replied,  '  Waal,  there  is  a  train  that  is  apt  to 
pass  here  at  about  6.30.' 

"  I  found  America  in  '79  very  much  what 
England  probably  was  sixty  years  ago.  Away 
from  the  more  intellectual  centres  one  would 
have  described  the  disposition  and  attitude  of 
mind  of  the  American  people  as  being 'provin- 
cial.' I  am  speaking  of  America  twenty  years 
ago,  and  of  course  that  nation  has  made  great 
strides  since  that  time.  It  was  a  significant  and 
unpleasant  fact  that  all  artists  were  looked  at 
askance.  An  artist  had  no  social  position  at  all 
in  New  York,  and  I  think  this  especially  applied 
to  the  musician. 

"  It  is  hardly  worth  while  mentioning  it  now, 
perhaps,  as  American  views  on  the  subject  have 
changed  so  completely,  but  as  an  instance  of  what 
I  mean,  I  remember  that,  on  one  occasion,  hav- 
ing accepted  an  invitation  to  dine  one  night  atone 
of  the  best  houses  in  New  York,  there  was  one 
vacant  chair.  It  should  have  been  occupied  by  a 
woman  who  was  noted  for  her  good  looks  and  her 
good  social  position.  I  afterwards  discovered  that 
her  husband  had  prevailed  upon  her  not  to  dine 


HIS    LIFE    STORY  153 

with  us,  as  there  was  a  distinguished  Professor 
of  Music  with  us.  He  thought  it  was  so  curious 
that  she  should  be  asked  to  sit  down  to  the  same 
table  with  a  musician!  If  I  remember  rightly, 
he  was  a  prosperous  watchmaker  in  Broadway. 

"Music  in  America  in  '79  was  in  a  very  back- 
ward state  in  many  important  respects.  When  I 
went  over  there  in  '85  a  great  change  had  taken 
place,  and  everywhere  much  greater  consideration 
was  shown  to  music — and  to  musicians." 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE   MOST   POPULAR   OPERA 

(1878-1885) 

' '  lolanthe  "  —  "  Princess  Ida  "  —  "  Patience  "  —  "  The 
Mikado" — His  Mother  Dies — Knighthood — "The  Golden 
Legend  " — Visits  Salt  Lake  City. 

IN  the  beginning  of  1878  Sullivan  was  ap- 
pointed Royal  Commissioner  for  music  at 
the  Paris  Exhibition.  An  allusion  to  this 
is  made  in  a  letter  to  his  mother  from  Nice,  dated 
January  16:  "I  got  the  following  telegram  last 
night  from  Owen,  Secretary  to  the  British  Com- 
mission— '  Conference  finally  settling  every  ques- 
tion meets  for  last  time  on  Saturday.  Have  been 
most  urgently  requested  by  the  French  Govern- 
ment and  whole  Commission  to  desire  your  pres- 
ence Saturday.  Urgently  necessary  or  would 
not  disturb  you.  Whole  of  our  part  of  musical 
arrangements  finally  compromised  by  your  ab- 
sence.' To  this  I  replied  that  I  would  go,  and 
so  I  must  leave  my  beautiful  sunshine,  and  lovely 
flowers,  and  travel  twenty-two  hours  into  the  cold 

154 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  155 

again."  Four  days  later  writing  to  another 
relative  he  says :  "  Yesterday  was  the  meeting  of 
the  Musical  Commission,  which  lasted  two  hours 
and  a  half.  I  prepared  my  proposition  and  threw 
a  bombshell  into  their  midst — they  were  staggered , 
and  they  called  another  meeting  to-morrow  morn- 
ing to  consider  the  question.  I  have  said  that  if 
they  didn't  agree  to  my  request  /,  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  England  (!),  will  withdraw  from  all 
further  participation  in  it  and  am  writing  to  the 
Prince  of  Wales  now  to  tell  him  of  the  state  of 
affairs.  I  found  these  French  beggars  so  awfully 
selfish  and  I  was  glad  to  have  a  shot  at  them,  so 
to-morrow  will  see  the  result." 

However,  the  "beggars"  calmed  down  and 
everything  went  smoothly.  For  his  services  in 
connection  with  the  Exhibition  he  received  the 
order  of  the  Legion  d'Honneur.  More  than  this, 
however,  the  Directors  of  the  Paris  Conservatoire 
proposed  the  performance  of  his  "  In  Memoriam" 
Overture  at  one  of  their  concerts.  It  was  the 
first  occasion  in  the  annals  of  the  Conservatoire 
that  the  work  of  an  Englishman  had  formed  part 
of  its  programme. 

In  the  April  of  the  following  year,  1879,  "The 


156  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Pirates  of  Penzance"  was  produced  at  the  Opera 
Comique  after  having  run  for  some  time  in  New 
York.  It  held  the  stage  in  London  for  nearly 
four  hundred  nights,  during  which  time,  having 
visited  America  as  already  recounted,  Sullivan 
wrote  a  sacred  cantata  for  the  Leeds  Festival, 
selecting  Milman's  poem  "The  Martyr  of  An- 
tioch"  for  treatment. 

In  the  following  year,  1881,  another  opera  was 
produced  at  the  Opera  Comique,  but  was  then 
transplanted  to  the  new  theatre — the  Savoy,  which 
Mr.  Carte  had  been  building.  Mr.  D'Oyly  Carte 
had  erected  the  new  theatre  solely  for  the  presenta- 
tion of  the  Gilbert-Sullivan  operas.  The  active 
theatre  director  could  fairly  claim  that  the  new 
theatre  had  been  built  on  a  spot  possessing  many 
associations  of  historic  interest,  being  close  to 
the  Savoy  Chapel,  and  in  the  precincts  of  the 
Savoy,  where  stood  formerly  the  Savoy  Palace, 
once  inhabited  by  John  of  Gaunt  and  the  Dukes 
of  Lancaster,  and  made  memorable  by  the  wars  of 
the  Roses.  On  the  old  Savoy  manor  there  was 
at  one  time  a  theatre,  and  so  the  ancient  name 
was  used  as  an  appropriate  title  for  the  new  build- 
ing.   The  seating  capacity  of  the  Savoy  is  1,292 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  157 

persons,  and  its  inauguration  was  of  the  greater 
interest  in  that  it  was  the  first  time  that  the 
attempt  had  been  made  to  light  any  building 
entirely  by  electricity.  Nor  in  the  manner  of 
decoration  had  Mr.  Carte  shown  any  lack  of  the 
progressivenessso  characteristic  of  him.  Instead 
of  paintings  of  cherubim,  muses,  angels,  and 
mythological  deities,  the  ornament  consists  en- 
tirely of  delicate  plaster  modelling  designed  in  the 
manner  of  the  Italian  Renaissance.  The  main 
colour  tones  are  white,  yellow,  and  gold — gold 
used  only  for  backgrounds  or  for  large  masses, 
and  not  following  what  may  be  called  for  want 
of  a  worse  name  the  gingerbread  school  of 
decorative  art,  in  the  guilding  of  relief  work,  or 
modelling.  I  believe  this  was  also  one  of  the 
first  theatres  which  absolutely  abolished  the 
absurd  and  irritating  system  of  fees  and  gratui- 
ties. The  Savoy  was  opened  on  Monday, 
October  10, 1881,  with  the  transplanted  "Patience" 
at  its  first-night  production.  Sir  Arthur  con- 
ducted on  that  occasion,  and  at  midnight  changed 
his  clothes,  went  down  to  Norwich  by  midnight 
train,  and  conducted  the  rehearsal  of  the  Festival 
at  Norwich  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning,  very 


158  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

much  to  the  surprise  of  everyone,  who  had  been 
reading  the  accounts  in  the  morning  papers  of  the 
opening  night  at  the  Savoy. 

In  1882  there  is  a  gap  in  his  correspondence, 
for  in  that  year,  on  May  27,  aged  seventy-one, 
his  mother  died.  It  would  be  purposeless  and 
painful  to  dwell  even  for  a  moment  upon  what 
this  grievous  loss  meant  to  him.  His  father  had 
died  at  the  very  beginning  of  Arthur's  career,  but 
the  mother  had  lived  to  see  her  son  become  the 
most  successful,  and  in  every  way — personally  as 
well  as  in  regard  to  his  work — the  most  popular 
composer  of  this  country.  Although  the  intimate 
and  affectionate  intercourse  which  had  always 
existed  between  them  made  the  loss  so  severe  for 
him,  it  was  a  sorrow  with  no  bitterness  in  it,  and 
one  which  time  would  assuage.  Success  had 
never  in  the  least  degree  abated  his  love  for 
home,  and  his  mother's  fifteen  years  of  widow- 
hood had  brought  mother  and  son  all  the  closer 
together. 

Under  the  circumstances  it  is  not  surprising 
that  at  that  time  nothing  of  first-rate  importance 
appeared  from  his  pen.  "  lolanthe  "  (1882)  and 
"Princess  Ida"    (1884)    are  amongst  the  least 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  159 

appreciated  of  the  operas.^  If,  however,  the 
public  conceive  that  this  falling-off  implied  that 
the  distinguished  collaborateurs  had  come  to  the 
end  of  their  resources,  the  production  of  "  The 
Mikado"  in  1885  provided  a  very  strong  re- 
assurance on  the  point. 

Meanwhile,  in  1883,  he  had  been  knighted.  It 
is  often  argued  nowadays  that  the  honour  of 
knighthood  is  an  empty  one,  because  it  is  given 
to  the  wealthy  tradesman  as  well  as  to  the  man 
who  would  be  no  less  distinguished  without  it. 
Yet  one  may  suggest  that  in  matters  of  this  kind 

1 1882,  it  may  be  remarked,  is  the  darkest  year  of  Sullivan's 
history.  On  the  very  evening  that  he  was  to  conduct  the  first- 
night  performance  of  "  lolanthe, "  information  reached  him  that 
all  the  savings  of  a  lifetime  had  disappeared  in  the  bankruptcy 
of  Cooper,  Hall  &  Co. ,  with  whom  all  his  securities  and  so  forth 
had  been  deposited.  Nothing  now  remained  of  his  fortune  save 
the  few  hundred  pounds  which  he  happened  to  have  at  his  bank 
at  that  moment.  The  popularity  of  all  his  work  is  well  known. 
The  operas  preceding  this  unfortunate  year  had  alone  been  the 
source  of  a  big  income,  and  he  had  never  been  an  extravagant 
man.  In  a  moment  the  result  of  the  work  of  a  lifetime  and  of 
continual  economy  had  been  swept  away.  Financially  he  was 
now  little  better  off  than  at  the  time  when  he  was  a  student  at 
Leipzig.  From  the  purely  monetary'  point  of  view  he  had  to  make 
a  beginning  once  again.  At  the  zenith  of  his  career  the  outcome 
of  twenty-five  years'  success  disappears  as  if  at  the  behest  of  an 
evil  magician.  It  is  a  dark  day,  which  leaves  him  poor  indeed. 
In  the  evening  he  conducts  the  first-night  performance  of 
"lolanthe." 


i6o  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

everything  depends  upon  the  services  for  which 
this  honour  is  given  and  the  manner  of  the  man 
to  whom  it  is  given,  and  who,  in  so  many  cases, 
gives  an  added  dignity  to  the  title.  So  long  as 
we  are  able  to  appreciate  distinguished  services 
of  any  kind,  on  the  field  of  battle  or  in  civil  life, 
in  the  ranks  of  statesmanship  or  diplomacy,  or 
on  the  part  of  the  musician,  the  artist,  the 
litterateur  or  the  historian,  it  is  only  natural  that 
as  a  nation  we  should  seek  some  way  in  which  to 
express  our  approval,  and  if  the  man  is  proud  of 
his  order,  or  ribbon,  or  title,  we  can  honour  him 
for  the  pride  which  he  takes  in  it,  and  for  his 
enhancement  of  this  mark  of  his  country's 
regard. 

"  lolanthe  "  had  been  received  with  no  less 
enthusiasm  than  its  predecessors,  and  the  fact 
that  any  music  at  all  could  be  applied  to  the 
words  of  certain  songs  found  in  the  libretto  had 
been  a  matter  of  surpise  to  those  who,  even  by 
this  time,  had  scarcely  become  acquainted  with 
the  composer's  unique  rhythmic  facility.  From 
the  musical  point  of  view  "  lolanthe  "  is  memor- 
able for  the  charming  duet,  "  None  Shall  Part 
Us,"  and   for  the   delightful   ballad,  "  In    Baby- 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  i6i 

hood."  The  "early  English"  element  which 
Sullivan  had  so  frequently  and  so  happily  intro- 
duced into  some  of  the  operas  is  exemplified  in 
"  lolanthe  "  by  the  song  of  the  centurion  in  the 
second  act.  Equally  fine  is  the  florid  cadenza 
sung  by  the  same  gallant  soldier  later  on  in  the 
piece.  There  is  also  the  "  Patter  Song  "  for  the 
Lord  Chancellor,  in  which,  as  in  all  work  of  a 
similar  character,  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  has  shown 
himself  quite  incomparable.  As  a  writer  said  at 
the  time:  "  Mr.  Sullivan  might  have  been  con- 
tent with  mere  chords  of  accompaniment,  since 
the  audience  in  such  cases  listens  only  to  the 
words,  but  the  orchestral  part  is  one  of  singular 
elaboration,  beauty,  and  effect.  We  know  noth- 
ing better  of  its  kind."  "  It  has  all  the  delicacy 
of  touch  and  felicitous  fancy  of  Mendelssohn 
when  dealing  with  kindred  themes." 

Personally  I  am  disposed  to  quarrel  with  the 
frequently  expressed  view  that  Sullivan's  music 
should  be  allied  to  more  "  serious"  subjects.  To 
quote  one  critic : "  Abounding  in  charm  of  melody, 
piquancy  of  rhythm,  and  instances  of  tender 
grace  and  sentiment,  his  music  '  is  worthy  of 
more    serious    association.' "      These    remarks 


i62  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

are  of  course  made  by  the  way  of  compliment, 
and,  so  far,  well  and  good,  but  it  has  often  oc- 
curred to  me  that  in  these  well-meaning  refer- 
ences the  people  who  make  them  are  assum- 
ing too  readily  that  what  is  called  serious 
work,  as  such,  is  important.  Nor  is  there  any 
reason  for  suggesting  that  there  is  anything  par- 
ticularly precious  about  any  form  of  art  because 
it  appeals  to  the  few.  On  the  contrary,  if  a 
work  of  art,  be  it  book,  music,  or  picture,  is  such 
that  it  can  never  be  popular,  its  unpopularity  is 
no  more  than  an  indication  of  its  limitations. 
The  ballads  of  a  nation  better  indicate  its  condi- 
tion and  tendency  than  its  laws.  Moreover, 
there  is  not  much  temptation  to  write  so-called 
serious  work  in  this  country,  and  if  there  were, 
there  is  no  reason  why  any  composer  should 
succumb  to  it — at  all  events,  to  the  extent  of 
ignoring  the  lighter  vein.  Fortunately,  even  in 
this  country,  we  are  not  always  serious,  and  it 
must  be  added  that  there  is  no  public  which  wel- 
comes good  humour  so  readily.  Indeed,  not- 
withstanding the  pretentious  declarations  of 
some  of  the  professional  critics,  whose  business 
in  life  is  to  advise  every  artist  to  do  something 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  163 

other  than  that  which  he  wishes  and  the  public 
desires  him  to  do,  most  of  us  are  fully  con- 
scious that  we  owe  a  great  debt  of  gratitude  to 
the  man  who  materially  aids  us  in  that  laughter- 
loving  spirit  which  is  the  best  remedy  or  conso- 
lation for  the  heart-ache  and  a  thousand  ills 
which  flesh  is  heir  to.  In  more  than  one  instance 
I  have  observed  the  tendency  to  tackle  big 
schemes  and  adopt  serious  subjects,  as  a  means 
of  justifying  purely  academic  treatment  and 
feeble  workmanship,  while  it  is  left  to  the  man 
of  genius  to  deal  with  the  lighter  and  more 
familiar  aspects  of  life,  and  to  illumine  his  sub- 
jects by  the  splendour  of  his  own  treatment. 
The  point  of  view,  however,  to  which  I  have  al- 
luded finds  expression  in  the  quotation  which  I 
shall  make  from  the  Musical  Review  of  sixteen 
years  ago,  and  although  the  reference  in  this  case 
is  not  uncomplimentary,  it  is  amusing  to  note 
that  the  suggestion  that  he  has  "  descended  "  to 
opera,  and  should  return  to  so-called  serious 
work,  is  based  on  the  fact  that  he  has  been  the 
recipient  of  a  knighthood!  "To  use  a  slightly 
stale  expression,  Noblesse  oblige^  some  things  that 
Mr.  Arthur  Sullivan  may  do,  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan 


i64  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

ought  not  to  do.  In  other  words,  it  will  look 
rather  more  than  odd  to  see  announced  in  the 
papers  that  a  new  comic  opera  is  in  preparation, 
the  book  by  Mr.  W.  S.  Gilbert  and  the  music  by 
Sir  Arthur  Sullivan.  A  musical  knight  can  hardly 
write  shop  ballads  either;  he  must  not  dare  to 
soil  his  hands  with  anything  less  than  an  anthem 
or  a  madrigal;  oratorio,  in  which  he  has  so  con- 
spicuously shone,  and  symphony,  must  now  be 
his  line.  Here  is  not  only  an  opportunity,  but  a 
positive  obligation  for  him  to  return  to  the 
sphere  from  which  he  has  too  long  descended. 
Again  we  would  beg  him  to  remember  that  he 
alone  of  all  his  brother  knights  possesses  youth 
and  strength,  and,  therefore,  it  is  to  him  that  we 
look  to  wield  the  knightly  sword — to  do  battle 
for  the  honour  of  English  art.  Let  him,  with  all 
his  native  activity  and  energy,  with  that  scorn  of 
the  dolce farniente  which  characterises  him,  stand 
forth  as  our  champion  and  leader  against  all 
foreign  rivals,  and  arouse  us  thoroughly  from 
our  present  half-torpid  condition.  Let  our  mu- 
sical daze  be  broken  by  our  musical  knight,  and 
that  night  prove  the  forerunner  of  brighter 
days." 


HIS   LIFE    STORY  165 

The  musical  renaissance  of  Great  Britain  is  part 
of  the  history  of  the  last  thirty  years.  It  must  be 
left  to  posterity  to  give  it  definition.  How  truly 
that  renaissance  has  been  due  to  the  genius  of 
Sullivan,  and  the  fact  that  he  has  been  able  to 
write,  so  to  speak,  coram  popzdo,  will  be  determin- 
able when  the  historian  is  able  to  analyse  im- 
partially the  work  and  influence  of  the  men  of  this 
generation,  at  a  time  when  our  present  petty 
jealousies  and  differences  of  opinion  will  have 
been  relegated  to  oblivion. 

On  March  14,  1885,  was  produced  the  most 
popular  of  the  Gilbert-Sullivan  operas,  "  The 
Mikado."  It  was  a  triumph  on  the  part  of  the 
librettist  and  of  the  musician.  While  Sir  Arthur 
claims  "  The  Yeoman  of  the  Guard  "  as  the  best 
of  the  operas  from  the  musical  point  of  view, 
"The  Mikado"  is  probably  the  most  popular  of 
them  all.  Although  it  may  be  said  that  Gilbert 
has  never  written  a  better  libretto,  in  which  regard 
"  The  Mikado  "  is  a  powerful  contrast  to  its  im- 
mediate predecessor,  "  Princess  Ida  "  (1884),  which 
I  imagine  to  be  the  least  effective  of  the  operas, 
certainly  neither  librettist  nor  musician  has  ever 
been  more  captivating  than   in   this   delightful 


i66  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

travesty  of  Japan.  To  name  the  choice  things 
in  the  opera  would  be  to  mention  everything  in 
it.  Such  songs  as  "A  Wandering  Minstrel  I," 
"The  Sun  Whose  Rays,"  "Three  Little  Maids 
from  School  are  We,"  will  never  lose  their 
vitality. 

Meanwhile,  Sullivan  had  accepted  the  con- 
ductorship  of  the  Philharmonic  Society,  and  in 
the  January  of  '86  we  find  him  taking  the  chair 
at  the  annual  dinner  of  the  members  of  the  Bir- 
mingham Clef  Club,  of  which  he  was  President. 
It  was  in  the  speech  which  he  then  made  that  he 
let  loose  upon  the  world  a  little  anecdote  which 
has  travelled  so  far,  and  been  so  bruited  about, 
that  I  should  hesitate  to  use  it  again  were  it  not  for 
the  pleasure  of  rendering  it  accurately:  "  Well,  I 
have  travelled  far  and  seen  considerable,"  he  said 
in  allusion  to  a  reference  he  had  already  made, 
"  and  some  of  my  experiences  have  been  very 
curious.  Amongst  them  was  one  I  will  relate  to 
you  if  you  will  permit  me,  in  which  arose  a  most 
curious  case  of  mistaken  identity,  more  or  less 
gratifying  to  me  as  a  musician.  I  was  travelling 
on  a  stage  in  rather  a  wild  part  of  California  and 
arrived  at  a  mining  camp,  where  we  had  to  get 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  167 

down  for  refreshments.  As  we  drove  up,  the 
driver  said,  '  They  are  expecting  you  here, 
Mr.  Sullivan.'  I  was  much  pleased,  and  when 
I  reached  the  place  I  came  across  a  knot  of 
prominent  citizens  at  the  whisky  store.  The 
foremost  of  them  came  up  to  a  big  burly  man 
by  my  side  and  said, 'Are  you  Mr.  Sullivan?' 
The  man  said,  *  No  ! '  and  pointed  to  me.  The 
citizen  looked  at  me  rather  contemptuously,  and 
after  a  while  said,  '  Why,  how  much  do  you 
weigh?'  I  thought  this  was  a  curious  method 
of  testing  the  power  of  a  composer,  but  I  at  once 
answered,  '  About  one  hundred  and  sixty-two 
pounds. '  '  Well,'  said  the  man,  '  that's  odd  to 
me,  anyhow.  Do  you  mean  to  say  that  you  gave 
fits  to  John  S.  Blackmore  down  in  Kansas  City?' 
I  said,  '  No,  I  did  not  give  him  fits.'  He  then 
said,  '  Well,  vv^ho  are  you  ? '  I  replied,  '  My  name 
is  Sullivan.'  'Ain't  you  John  L.  Sullivan,  the 
slogger  ? '  I  disclaimed  all  title  to  that  and  told 
him  I  was  Arthur  Sullivan.  '  Oh,  Arthur  Sulli- 
van ! '  he  said.  '  Are  you  the  man  as  put  "  Pina- 
fore "  together  ? ' — rather  a  gratifying  way  of  de- 
scribing my  composition.  I  said 'Yes.'  'Well,' 
returned  the  citizen,  '  I  am  sorry  you  ain't  John 


i68  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Sullivan,  but  still  I  am  glad  to  see  you  anyway — 
let's  have  a  drink.'  " 

It  was  in  '86  that  the  bold  experiment  was 
made  of  producing  the  "  Mikado"  in  Berlin.  It 
was  performed  by  one  of  the  English  companies 
which  had  been  on  tour  in  America.  It  was  an 
experiment  which  was  fully  justified.  The  semi- 
official North  German  Gazette  wrote  :  "At  the 
very  outset  we  were  surprised  by  the  pretty 
scenery  and  the  truly  blinding  splendour  of  the 
dresses,  as  well  as  by  the  easy  grace  of  all  who 
took  part  in  the  play.  Not  only  are  the  solo 
singers  excellent  performers,  but  the  inferior 
members  of  the  choir  do  their  work  artistically. 
We  are  conscious  of  entertaining  a  very  pro- 
nounced predilection  for  all  our  home  products, 
but  we  scruple  not  to  confess  that,  as  a  perform- 
ance, 'The  Mikado'  surpasses  all  our  operettas. 
And  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that  the  English 
dialogue,  after  all,  must  remain  unintelligible  to  the 
bulk  of  the  audience,  and  thus  hamper  their  ap- 
preciation of  the  piece,  their  delight  in  the  treat 
which  is  offered  them  would  be  greater  still.  The 
music  is  effective  all  through,  and  even  comprises 
some  delicate  masterpieces." 


HIS    LIFE    STORY  169 

One  of  Sullivan's  finest  and  most  memorable 
works,  "  The  Golden  Legend,"  was  produced  at 
the  Leeds  Festival,  October  16,  '86.  The  effect 
of  the  work  upon  the  feelings  of  the  audience 
was  immediate  and  tremendous,  from  the  time 
of  the  splendidly  descriptive  introductory  num- 
ber, in  which  the  roaring  of  the  tempest,  the 
clang  of  the  cathedral  bells,  the  defiant  shouts 
of  the  demon,  and  the  answering  voices  of  the 
spirits  of  the  air  are  blended  with  such  striking 
effect,  to  the  no  less  magnificent  chorus  which 
closes  the  work.  Then  the  pent-up  enthusiasm 
of  the  vast  assemblage  burst  forth  like  a  torrent. 
Cheer  followed  cheer,  and  the  whole  audience 
upstanding,  handkerchiefs,  books,  or  anything 
else  that  was  near  at  hand  were  waved  aloft,  and 
the  overpowered  composer-conductor  was  sub- 
jected to  a  bombardment  of  flowers  which  the 
vocalists  and  ladies  of  the  chorus  showered  upon 
him. 

In  an  article  written  by  the  musical  critic  of 
The  World,  October  20,  1886,  wherein  the  mu- 
sical productions  of  the  preceding  week — princi- 
pally the  various  new  compositions  performed  at 
the  Leeds  Festival — are  dealt  with  in  a  manner 


I70  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

anything  but  enthusiastic,  there  is  a  reference  to 
"  The  Golden  Legend  "  which  I  cannot  forbear 
quoting,  including  one  or  two  somewhat  tech- 
nical allusions,  which  are,  however,  extremely 
interesting. 

"  '  The  Golden  Legend,'  about  which  I  said  a 
few  words  last  week,  is,  not  only  as  the  com- 
poser, but  as  everybody  who  has  heard  it  thinks, 
one  of  the  best  works  of  Sullivan,  and  one  of  the 
greatest  creations  we  have  had  for  many  years. 
Original,  bold,  inspiring,  grand  in  conception,  in 
execution,  in  treatment,  it  is  a  composition 
which  will  make  an  '  epoch  '  and  which  will  carry 
the  name  of  its  composer  higher  on  the  wings  of 
fame  and  glory.  The  effect  it  produced  at 
rehearsal  was  enormous.  The  effect  of  the  pub- 
lic performance  was  unprecedented.  I  have 
never  to  my  remembrance  found  such  unanimity 
of  opinion  among  the  public,  musicians,  and  the 
press.  The  remark  which  was  made  a  week 
ago  in  a  certain  journal,  that  nobody  can  write  a 
cantata  and  an  opera  in  six  months  is  entirely 
disproved  by  Sullivan,  who,  in  that  space  of 
time,  wrote  this  great  work  and  an  opera  which 
in  ten  days  may  be  rehearsed.     From  the  begin- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  171 

ning  with  a  chord  of  the  seventh/  in  itself  an 
innovation,  although  not  quite  without  prece- 
dent, to  the  last  note,  it  is  an  immense  work  in  its 
entirety  and  in  its  details,  its  creative  power,  and 
its  learning.  It  will  go  all  over  the  Continent 
and  carry  England's  flag  high,  in  that  very 
quality  which  so  long  and  so  unjustly  has  been 
denied  It,  in  music.  The  charm  and  the  majesty 
of  the  chorus,  and  the  pure  style  of  the  unaccom- 
panied choruses,  sung  with  unexampled  purity 
to  the  end  without  flinching,  would  alone  suffice 
to  make  Sullivan  the  Mozart  of  England." 

The  unanimity  of  the  critics  concerning  the 
cantata  was  indeed  surprising,  but  I  have  only 
space  for  one  more  quotation — from  the  Musical 
World,  October  23,  1886. 

"  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  in  '  The  Golden  Legend  ' 
has  surpassed  the  expectations  of  his  most 
ardent   admirers,   and  his   success   has   pleased 

1  In  sacred  music,  beginning  with  a  seventh  is,  of  course, 
without  precedent,  for  the  obvious  reason  of  unprepared  disson- 
ance. In  secular  music  I  know  only  of  a  concerto  by  Moscheles 
which  begins  so,  and  the  overture  to  "Masaniello,"  which  begins 
with  a  diminished  seventh.  Playing  the  first  notes  on  bells  is 
done  in  V.  Masse's  overture  to  his  "  Les  Noces  de  Jeannette," 
which  begins  with  the  merry  wedding  bells  G  E  F, 
G  E  F. 


172  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

them,  if  possible,  even  more  than  himself.  That 
success  has  indeed  relieved  them  from  a  some- 
what awkward  position.  It  was  difficult  for 
them  to  claim  a  place  in  the  foremost  ranks  of 
the  English  school  for  the  author  of  '  The  Pirates 
of  Penzance,' or  even  'The  Martyr  of  Antioch,' 
but  the  case  of  the  author  of  '  The  Golden 
Legend '  rests  on  a  very  different  basis." 

In  the  July  of  1885  he  was  at  Los  Angeles, 
California,  where  he  had  been  to  assist  in  straight- 
ening out  some  affairs  which  effected  his  young 
nephews;  and  writing  home  to  his  secretary 
(the  late  Mr.  Smythe),  he  says:  "At  Salt  Lake 
City  I  sent  for  X.,  who  was  proud  and  delighted 
to  be  my  friend  and  guide.  He  took  me  about 
everywhere  and  showed  me  the  whole  Mormon 
organisation,  their  houses,  families,  &c.  In  the 
evening  we  went  out  to  bathe  in  the  Lake — 
about  eighteen  miles  from  the  City — with  hun- 
dreds of  other  citizens.  The  water  is  so  full  of 
salt  and  so  bouyant,  that  you  can  hardly  swim  in 
it — your  legs  are  always  out  of  water.  The  next 
day  (Sunday)  I  went  to  the  Mormon  Tabernacle 
to  service.  The  hymn  tune  was  my  arrange- 
ment of  St.  Anne's  tune!     They  had  a  very  fine 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  173 

organ,  and  I  played  upon  it  for  an  hour  on  Satur- 
day. ...  I  saw  all  I  could  of  San  Francisco,  in- 
cluding the  celebrated  quarter — Chinatown,  and 
should  have  enjoyed  my  stay  there  very  much 
but  for  the  ceaseless  and  persistent  manner  in 
which  I  was  interviewed,  called  upon,  followed, 
and  written  to.  From  eight  in  the  morning  till 
midnight  I  was  never  allowed  to  be  alone.  If  I 
happened  to  be  in  the  hotel  I  couldn't  say  I 
wasn't  in;  they  would  come  right  into  the  room, 
or  hang  about  outside  until  I  made  my  appear- 
ance; so  on  Friday  I  packed  up  my  traps  and 
left,  started  at  3.30,  and  arrived  here  on  Satur- 
day at  1.30  .  .  .  and  there  I  stuck  with  this  let- 
ter ....  the  people  are  quieter  now,  but  at  first 
their  attention  was  oppressing.  Morning,  noon, 
and  night  they  would  call  and  ask  me  what  I 
thought  of  their  state — a  sort  of  welcome  to 
California." 


CHAPTER  IX 

SIR  ARTHUR'S   FAVOURITE   OPERA 
(1886-1889) 

"  Ruddigore  " — "Yeoman  of  the  Guard" — Emperor  and 
Empress  of  Germany — "The  Gondoliers" 

IT  would  seem  as  if  the  better  and  weaker  of 
the     operas    were     destined    to    alternate. 
"Princess   Ida"    preceded   "The    Mikado." 
which  is  followed  by  "  Ruddigore,"  which  then 
gives  place  to  that  delightful  work,  "  The  Yeoman 
of  the  Guard." 

In  "  Ruddigore  "  we  have  the  librettist  at  some- 
thing less  than  his  best.  Even  the  title  can 
scarcely  be  considered  a  good  example  of  Gil- 
bertian  felicity,  and  the  subjects  satirised  had 
become,  at  the  time  of  the  production  of  "  Ruddi- 
gore," somewhat  old-fashioned  and  out  of  date. 
As  so  often  happens,  many  less  important  matters 
went  with  the  stream.  The  stage  setting  lacked 
something  in  ingenuity.  Incidentally  it  was  a  pity 
that  in  what  should  have  been  an  impressive  scene 

174 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  175 

where  the  ancestors  step  out  of  their  pictures,  the 
portraits  in  question  were  simply  drawn  up  from 
the  resting-places,  and  on  the  first  night  two  of 
them  fell  down  on  the  stage.  There  is  some 
delightful  music  throughout  the  piece,  but  one  has 
to  look  for  it  more  in  such  concerted  numbers  as 
that  which  furnishes  the  music  to  the  midnight 
scene  to  which  I  have  already  alluded,  as  but 
few  songs  in  the  piece  have  caught  the  ear  of  the 
public. 

There  was  much  divergent  criticism,  but  it  was 
left  to  the  critic  of  the  Sporting  Times  (January 
29,  1887),  in  a  long  review  of  about  equal  parts 
of  good  nature  and  querulousness,  to  indite  a 
paragraph  which  was  curiously  prophetic.  "  I 
scarcely  dare  venture  on  a  moral,  and  even  the 
conclusion  that  I  have  formed  in  my  own  mind 
probably  will  not  be  justified  by  events,  for  good- 
ness only  knows  what  space  of  time  m.ight  be 
occupied  with  advantage  by  revivals  of  the  earlier 
Gilbert-Sullivan  operas.  For  something  like  ten 
long  years  the  public  has  been  supplied  by  Sir 
Arthur  Sullivan  and  Mr.  Gilbert  with  dramatic 
farce  that  has  differed  in  degree  rather  than  in 
sort.     It  is,  therefore,  just  possible  that  the  pub- 


176  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

lie  taste  has  become  vitiated  ;  the  delicacies  of 
Mr.  Gilbert's  humour,  however,  are  perhaps  not 
quite  so  nicely  appreciated  as  heretofore,  and 
public  appetite  may  be  satiated  with  surplusage 
of  dainties,  and  the  public  constitution  may  re- 
quire a  pick-me-up.  A  real  comic  opera,  dealing 
with  neither  topsy-turveydom  nor  fairies,  but  a 
genuine  dramatic  story,  written  with  all  Mr.  W. 
S.  Gilbert's  masterly  power,  and  set  to  such 
music  as  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  alone  can  compose, 
would  be  a  greater  novelty  and  a  more  splendid 
success  than  anything  we  are  at  all  likely  to  see 
during  the  present  dramatic  season." 

It  cannot  often  happen  that  the  critic  so  surely 
strikes  the  note  of  truth,  for  the  "  genuine  dra- 
matic story,  written  with  all  Mr.  W.  S.  Gilbert's 
masterly  power  and  set  to  such  music  as  Sir 
Arthur  Sullivan  alone  can  compose,"  may  fairly 
be  taken,  I  think,  as  an  absolutely  accurate, 
although  prophetic,  description  of  "  The  Yeoman 
of  the  Guard,"  which  was  produced  in  the  follow- 
ing year,  1888. 

Here  we  have  the  genuine  dramatic  story  of 
such  a  nature  and  of  such  a  musical  setting  that 
I  doubt  if  it  can  ever  be  surpassed  in  its  own  line. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  177 

It  has  all  the  charm  of  sincerity,  whilst  there  is 
no  lack  of  the  quaint  conceits  and  polished  lyrics 
which  mark  the  master  hand  of  our  King  of 
Librettists.  Here  also  Sullivan  has  fair  scope 
for  his  musical  genius.  Through  the  whole  of 
the  piece  there  is  nothing  which  is  not  of  his 
best.  To  mention  the  ballad  of  the  Jester,  "  I 
have  a  song  to  sing — O,"  Fairfax's  song,  **  Is  life 
a  boon,"  and  the  ballad  for  Phebe,  "Were  I  thy 
bride,"  and  the  song,  "  When  our  gallant  Norman 
foes,"  with  its  refrain,  "  The  screw  may  twist  and 
the  rack  may  turn,"  is  to  recall  work  which  is 
not  less  masterly  than  fascinating.  Sir  Arthur 
himself  believes  the  "Yeoman  of  the  Guard"  to 
be  the  best  of  the  operas  he  has  written. 

"  The  Golden  Legend "  was  performed  at 
the  Royal  Opera  House  in  Berlin  on  March  27, 
1887.  This  particular  performance  was  un- 
fortunate. In  fact,  the  rendering  was  feeble 
throughout. 

Sir  Arthur  having  been  asked  to  conduct,  the 
house  was  crammed,  and  the  Crown  Prince, 
Crown  Princess,  and  the  whole  Royal  Family,  as 
well  as  the  Prince  and  Princess  Christian,  were 
amongst   the   audience.     The   performers   were 


178  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

not  equal  to  the  task,  and  the  best  points  of  the 
work  could  not  be  emphasised.  Every  one  sym- 
pathised with  the  composer.  Worst  of  all  the 
heroine — a  German  vocalist  of  some  repute — 
seemed  to  have  lost  her  voice  for  the  occasion, 
and  all  that  remained  for  Sir  Arthur's  apprecia- 
tion was  the  kindness  of  the  audience  on  that 
occasion.  It  was  decided  to  give  another  per- 
formance, and  Sir  Arthur  was  fortunate  enough 
to  secure  the  services  of  Madame  Albani  for 
the  principal  part.  This  second  production, 
which  took  place  on  the  following  Saturday, 
April  3,  was  of  so  different  a  character  that  it 
resulted  in  a  complete  reversal  of  opinion  on  the 
part  of  the  critics  in  Germany.  Madame  Albani 
sang  superbly,  and  created  a  furore  in  the 
"Christe  Eleison."  She  was  enthusiastically 
encored,  and  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  received  an 
absolute  ovation  at  the  conclusion  of  the  per- 
formance. An  encore  in  works  of  this  kind  is 
without  precedent  in  that  country. 

I  may  here  give  my  notes  of  a  conversation 
which  I  had  with  Sir  Arthur  on  the  subject,  and 
it  will  be  noted  that  his  account  of  the  matter 
includes  his  recollection  of  the  Crown  Prince  and 


HIS  LIFE   STORY  179 

Princess  (now  Empress  Frederick)  and  their 
kindness  to  him. 

"  In  April  1887  I  went  to  superintend  and  con- 
duct the  performance  of  '  The  Golden  Legend '  in 
Germany.  Owing  to  various  unfortunate  circum- 
stances the  first  performance  was  an  execrable 
one.  They  have  no  well  organised  choral  socie- 
ties in  Berlin,  such  as  exist  in  great  numbers  in 
London.  The  solo  singers  were  moderate,  and 
the  principal  soprano  was  a  light  soubrette  from 
the  opera  !  She  was,  of  course,  utterly  unfitted 
to  sing  the  music  in  question,  and  for  some  cause 
or  other  she  could  not  manage  to  sing  one  note 
properly  at  the  actual  performance.  One  might 
have  imagined  her  to  be  a  bad  amateur  trying  to 
read  the  music  at  sight. 

"The  performance  took  place  at  the  Royal 
Opera  House,  where  there  was  a  very  small  and 
racketty  old  organ,  which  was  also  unfortunate, 
as  the  organ  plays  a  very  important  part  in  'The 
Golden  Legend.'  I  could  get  no  bells  for  the 
prologue,  and  through  the  personal  efforts  of  the 
Crown  Princess  we  secured  some  large  Chinese 
gongs  to  try  and  represent  the  bells.  Altogether 
the  performance  was  lamentable.     However,  I 


i8o  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

determined  not  to  be  overcome  in  this  way  if  I 
could  help  it,  and  as  Madame  Albani  was  in 
Holland  at  that  time  I  telegraphed  to  her  to 
know  if  she  could  sing  the  work  if  I  gave  another 
performance  on  the  following  Saturday.  She 
very  kindly  replied  in  the  affirmative,  and  in  spite 
of  the  drawbacks  that  I  have  mentioned  Madame 
Albani  sang  the  music  so  splendidly  that  the 
entire  work  created  quite  a  different  impression. 
"  Both  the  Crown  Prince  and  the  Crown  Prin- 
cess were  very  good,  and  extremely  kind  and 
sympathetic  under  the  load  of  misfortune  which 
I  had  to  contend  with,  and  they  were  most  help- 
ful in  every  possible  way.  Although  I  was  living 
at  an  hotel  they  made  me  look  upon  their  palace 
as  my  home.  I  constantly  spent  the  whole  day 
there,  and  it  was  then  that  I  noted  the  first 
symptoms  of  his  terrible  illness.  One  day  I 
drove  out  with  them  to  the  races  at  Charlotten- 
burg.  There  was  a  cold  wind  blowing,  and  when 
the  Crown  Prince  was  standing  outside  the  Royal 
Pavilion  the  Princess  entreated  him  to  go  inside, 
and  then  it  was  that  I  noticed  the  curious  harsh- 
ness in  his  voice  which  indicated  the  approaching 
fatality. 


ARTHUR  SULLIV^X 

AETAT.     44. 


HIS    LIFE    STORY  i8i 

"  I  have  never  met  a  man  of  greater  charm  of 
manner.  He  gave  me  the  notion  of  great 
strength  and  extraordinary  gentleness.  His  fund 
of  general  information  was  both  sound  and  recon- 
dite, and  he  always  had  something  interesting  to 
say,  whether  the  conversation  turned  upon  art, 
literature,  science,  or  politics.  The  Empress  was 
one  of  the  most  captivating  women  imaginable, 
and  of  rare  ability.  If  she  had  been  compelled 
to  earn  her  own  living  she  would  have  made  her 
mark,  and  been  successful  to  a  degree  in  almost 
any  professional  vocation." 

It  was  on  October  19,  1888,  that,  as  President 
of  the  Birmingham  and  Midland  Institute,  Sir 
Arthur  Sullivan  distributed  the  prizes  to  the  stu- 
dents in  the  Town  Hall,  Birmingham,  and 
delivered  an  address  on  music  which  I  have 
ventured  to  put  on  more  permanent  record  by 
reprinting  it  in  a  supplementary  chapter. 

Amongst  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan's  productions  this 
year  was  the  incidental  music  to  "Macbeth," 
written  for  the  Lyceum  and  produced  by  Sir 
(then  Mr.)  Henry  Irving,  December  29,  1888. 

"The  Gondoliers  ;  or.  The  King  of  Barataria," 
produced  at  the  Savoy  on  December  7,  1889,  was 


i82         -SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

destined  to  prove  one  of  the  most  popular  of  the 
operas,  the  Hbrettist  and  the  musician  being  at 
their  best,  whilst  the  setting  of  the  piece  resem- 
bles "The  Mikado"  and  *' The  Yeoman  of  the 
Guard,"  in  the  brilliancy  of  its  colour  and  its  gen- 
eral effectiveness.  Once  more  we  are  delighted 
with  Sullivan's  musical  wit,  with  an  orchestration 
of  rare  musicianly  skill,  individualised  in  this 
instance  by  many  delightful  passages  for  the  oboe 
which  is  frequently  and  very  happily  employed 
through  the  opera,  whilst  among  the  many  beau- 
tiful songs  one  may  at  least  venture  to  claim  per- 
manence for  that  enchanting  ditty,  *'  Take  a  pair 
of  sparkling  eyes."  As  compared  to  "  The  Yeo- 
man of  the  Guard,"  the  "  Gondoliers"  is  rollick- 
ing comedy  as  against  melodrama.  In  regard  to 
the  personnel  of  this  first  performance  it  should 
be  mentioned  that  the  part  of  the  heroine  was 
played  by  Miss  Decima  Moore,  this  being,  at  the 
age  of  eighteen,  her  first  appearance  on  the  stage 
Miss  Geraldine  Ulmar  was  the  prima-donna.  In 
this  piece  Rutland  Harrington  returned  to  his 
work  at  the  Savoy.  Mr.  George  Grossmith  had 
seceded  from  the  Savoy  and  Mr.  W.  H.  Denney 
and  Mr.  Frank  Wyatt  were  the  new  arrivals.     Of 


22  BARKSTON  CaROENS. 

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HIS   LIFE   STORY  *         183 

course  the  librettist  had  the  personality  of  the 
cast  in  his  mind  when  writing  the  opera,  so  that 
the  gap  in  the  ranks  caused  by  the  absence  of  so 
accomplished  a  comedian  as  George  Grossmith 
was  scarcely  noticeable.  As  "The  Gondoliers" 
contained  no  part  which  would  have  particularly 
suited  him,  invidious  comparisons  were  avoided, 
and,  as  all  play-goers  know,  the  opera  was  a 
tremendous  success. 

The  musical  critic  of  the  Telegraph  wrote 
very  much  to  the  point  when  he  said :  "  The 
'  Gondoliers '  conveys  an  impression  of  having 
been  written  con  amove.  It  is  as  spontaneous  as 
the  light-hearted  laughter  of  the  sunny  south  and 
as  luminous  as  an  Italian  summer  sky.  On  it 
flows,  adapting  itself  to  every  change  of  circum- 
stance and  sentiment,  not  less  easily  than  a 
streamlet  conforms  to  the  channel  in  which  it 
runs.  And  one  can  as  clearly  see  to  the  bottom 
as  distinguish  the  bed  of  a  mountain  burn.  It 
gives  us  an  exuberance  of  pure  tune,  never  dis- 
guised, but  always,  whether  sentimental,  joyous, 
or  humourous — there  is  no  less  humour  in  the 
music  than  in  the  words — frank,  openhearted  and 
free.     Connoisseurs  of  the  divine  art  may  listen 


i84  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

to  it  with  half-contemptuous  toleration,  but  let 
none  of  them  carry  away  the  idea  that  such  songs 
and  concerted  pieces  are  easily  written  because 
of  their  transparent  simplicity,  stories  of  Ros- 
sini's fluency  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding.  It 
is  much  less  difhcult  to  compose  music  that 
nobody  understands — many  people  do  it — than 
to  give  forth  strains  on  which  no  shadow  of 
doubt  ever  falls.  Equally  true  is  it  that  for  a 
work  like  '  The  Gondoliers,'  the  mere  melodist — 
of  first  importance  though  he  be — does  not  suffice. 
The  trained  and  expert  musician  is  hardly  less 
necessary  for  effects  that  colour  the  rhythmic 
outline,  and  surround  it  with  the  embellishments 

of  an  artistic  fancy The  happiest  devices 

of  rhythm,  the  subtlest  shades  of  inflection,  and 
the  choicest  effects  of  colour  are  lavished  on  the 
score  with  unerring  judgment,  the  result  being 
that  the  music  fits  into  every  fold  and  crease  of 
the  subject.  Let  no  one  suppose,  then,  that, 
while  the  general  public  is  delighted,  the  musi- 
cian can  find  nothing  for  his  own  special  admira- 
tion. No  greater  mistake  is  possible.  He  has 
only  to  follow  the  orchestration  in  order  to  secure 
an  evening's  enjoyment  of  the  kind  he  loves.  We 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  185 

have  spoken  of  humour  in  the  music.  As  to  this 
there  is  abundance,  variously  displayed,  and 
often  with  the  quickness  and  subtlety  of  an 
inspiration.  Humour,  we  need  not  point  out, 
is  to  a  composer  an  extremely  valuable  gift,  and 
nearly  all  the  greatest  masters  had  it.  With 
Haydn  it  overflowed,  some  of  Mozart's  pages 
are  a  laugh,  and  even  the  sombre  Beethoven 
sometimes  greets  us,  on  paper,  with  abroad  grin. 
If  valuable  in  general,  it  is  absolutely  essential 
to  a  composer  of  comic  opera.  Sir  Arthur  Sulli- 
van has  it  in  a  peculiarly  delicate  and  insinuating 
form,  to  which  page  after  page  in  '  The  Gondo- 
liers '  bears  convincing  evidence.  Leaving  the 
discussion  of  ingredients  in  the  general  effect,  let 
us  indicate  the  all-pervading  character  of  bright- 
ness and  unaffected  delight.  In  the  Venetian  act 
the  exuberant  life  of  the  sunny  land  finds  expres- 
sion with  Rossinian  fulness  and  abandon,  while  in 
the  more  delicate  comedy  scenes,  our  English 
Auber  could  not  be  more  piquant  and  charming 
were  he  the  famous  Frenchman  himself.  By 
way  of  exemplifying  these  remarks,  we  might  go 
through  the  numbers  of  the  opera  one  by  one, 
but  such  a  list  may  well  be  spared  now  that  we 


i86  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

have  indicated  features  which,  as  everybody  will 
witness  the  opera,  everybody  will  identify  on  his 
own  account." 

The  imitation  of  the  old  Italian  opera  of  the 
type  of  the  end  of  the  last  century  and  the  begin- 
ning of  the  present,  many  of  the  peculiarities  of 
which  are  to  be  seen  in  the  early  operas  of  Ros- 
sini, and  in  those  of  his  predecessors,  Jomelli, 
Martini,  Paesiello,  Sarti,  Salieri,  and  others  of  the 
minor  school  of  later  Italian  art,  forms  a  subtlety 
of  musical  humour  which  the  musician  can 
thoroughly  appreciate,  and  even  those  unac- 
quainted with  musical  history  can  heartily  enjoy. 
Not  alone  in  the  reproduction  of  the  peculiarities 
of  Italian  music,  operatic  or  popular,  is  the  skill 
of  the  composer  exhibited.  Of  music  of  a  more 
modern  character  there  is  abundance — songs 
both  serious  and  humorous,  such  as  "  When  a 
merry  maiden  marries,"  and  "  Thy  wintry  scorn 
I  nearly  prize,"  in  imitation  of  the  Molloy  and 
popular  ballad  vein,  some  that  are  purely  Sulli- 
vanesque,  patter  songs  of  the  model  suggested  in 
"  Pinafore,"  songs  preceded  by  the  time-hon- 
oured "Chaunt,"  as  it  was  called,  which  graced 
such  ditties  as  the  "Fine  old  English  gentleman," 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  187 

or  the  *'  Conversation  between  the  Monument 
and  St.  Paul's,"  popular  half  a  century  ago,  all  of 
which,  however,  are  bright  and  lively,  and 
adorned  with  the  skill  that  a  perfect  knowledge 
of  instrumental  resources  can  bring.  The  quartett 
"A  right  down  royal  Queen"  is  a  marvellous 
piece  of  merry  music,  and  the  other  quartett, 
"  In  contemplative  fashion,"  where  all  the  charac- 
ters sing  a  quiet  strain,  relieved  by  outbursts  of 
alternate  comment,  and  working  to  a  strong 
crescendo,  followed  by  a  calm  return  to  the  first 
manner,  although  not  altogether  novel  in  design 
— as  witness  Haydn's  trio  "Maiden  Fair" — is 
most  original  in  treatment,  and  made  an  immense 
hit. 

"The  Golden  Legend,"  than  which  no  musical 
work  has  been  more  enthusiastically  received  in 
this  country,  was  the  subject  of  a  special  "  com- 
mand" performance  at  the  Albert  Hall  on  May  8, 
'88.  In  the  August  of  that  year  it  was  one  of  the 
items  in  the  Birmingham  Festival,  the  directors 
of  which  thus  took  a  leaf  from  the  book  of  their 
rivals  at  Leeds. 

The  letters  which  Sir  Arthur  wrote  home 
during  this    period — from  '86  to  '89  inclusive — 


i88  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

were  addressed  to  his  secretary,  the  late  Mr. 
Smythe,  and  it  is  only  to  be  expected  that  they 
are  less  frequent  than  when  he  wrote  home  to  his 
mother;  but  amongst  the  points  alluded  to  in  them 
there  is  one  which,  from  my  point  of  view  as  a 
biographer,  I  think  may  very  well  be  alluded  to 
here.  Some  paragraphs  had  appeared  in  the  least 
scrupulous  part  of  the  press  which  would  have  led 
any  one  entirely  unacquainted  with  the  tempera- 
ment and  disposition  of  the  composer  to  imagine 
that  he  was  a  hardened  gambler.  Such  paragraphs 
scarcely  call  for  contradiction,  and  the  only  protest 
which  Sir  Arthur  made  about  them  is  contained 
in  these  private  letters;  and  if  I  take  up  the  ques- 
tion now  it  is  simply  because  a  biographical  work 
is  of  even  less  value  than  it  otherwise  may  be  if 
false  statements  are  not  corrected.  In  every  detail 
one  is  naturally  anxious  to  correct  false  impres- 
sions. It  is  the  sole  virtue  of  some  people  to  try 
and  find  faults  in  others.  The  rule  is  simple.  If 
you  cannot  discover  the  fault,  invent  it,  and 
plume  yourself  upon  your  good  nature  and  your 
accuracy. 

February  i8,  1888  (Monte  Carlo),  in  response 
apparently  to  Smythe's  inquiry. — "Alas!  I  have 


HIS    LIFE    STORY  189 

not  '  broken  the  bank '  here.  They  have  had 
sHghtly  the  better  of  me  as  yet,  but  as  I  don't 
play  much  or  high,  they  won't  bring  me  to 
grief!" 

March  i,  '89,  in  the  P.S. — "I  hear  a  great 
deal  of  untrue  rubbish  is  written  about  me  in  the 
papers — high  gambling,  etc.  I  did  one  day  have 
five  louis  on  zero  and  it  came  up — that  has  been 
my  most  distinguished  feat!  It  happens  to  others 
hundreds  of  times  daily,  only  their  faces  are  not 
so  well  known  as  mine.  I  wish  the  papers  would 
leave  me  alone  and  confine  themselves  to  Mr. 
Pigott!" 

Monte  Carlo,  Ash  Wednesday. —  "Between 
ourselves  I  am  bored  to  death  down  here.  I  can't 
walk  up  and  down  hills,  especially  in  the  wet.  I 
am  tired  of  the  eternal  gambling  and  the  jargon 
connected  with  it,  and  the  people  don't  interest 
me. 

Central  Hotel .  .  .  April  7. — "Of  course,  I  don't 
conduct  the  first  night  of  'The  Mikado ' — that 
wouldn't  be  etiquette,  but  I  shall  rehearse  the 
company,  and  see  how  they  are  getting  on,  and 
watch  the  impression.  The  Crown  Prince  and 
Princess  invited  me  to  stay  and  go  with  them  on 


19©  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

Monday,  so  now  I  shall  probably  accept.  Then 
Tuesday  is  Princess  Victoria's  birthday,  and  she 
has  begged  me  so  hard  to  remain  for  it,  that  if  I 
stay  till  Monday,  I  might  as  well  stay  a  day 
longer.  Nothing  will  induce  me  to  remain  after 
then.  ...  I  have  been  longing  for  weeks  to  get 
home,  and  feel  quite  home-sick." 


CHAPTER   X 

DISSOLUTION   OF   PARTNERSHIP 

(1889-1898) 

Sullivan  and  Gilbert  Part  Company — "  H addon  Hall" — 
' '  Utopia  "— "  The  Foresters  "— "  The  Chieftain  "— "  The 
Beauty  Stone" 

IT  was  during  the  run  of  the  "Gondoliers"  at 
the  Savoy  that  it  began  to  be  rumored  that 
the  musician  and  the  librettist  who  had  now 
collaborated  so  successfully  for  twenty-three  years 
had  dissolved  partnership.  If  one  desired  to  do 
so,  it  would  serve  no  useful  purpose  to  recount  the 
circumstances  which  preceded  a  disruption  which 
has  been  so  much  regretted  by  the  public.  It  is, 
indeed,  a  private  and  personal  matter,  and  it  is 
therefore  questionable  whether  there  will  ever  be 
any  sufficient  justification  for  a  relation  of  the 
incidents  which  preceded  this  dissolution  of  pro- 
fessional partnership. 

Gilbert  subsequently  wrote  a  piece  which  was 
set  to  music  by  the  late  Alfred  Cellier,  and  which 

191 


192  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

was  produced  at  another  theatre.  It  was  not 
until  1892  that  Sullivan  wrote  the  music  to  a  play 
entitled  "  Haddon  Hall,"  by  Mr.  Grundy,  pro- 
duced at  the  Savoy.  It  can  hardly  be  said  that 
the  libretto  is  inspiriting,  and  I  fancy  that  many 
of  the  lyrics  must  have  somewhat  offended  Sir 
Arthur's  keen  sense  of  rhythm.  However  that 
may  be,  there  are  but  few  songs  in  "  Haddon 
Hall"  which  have  achieved  any  great  popularity, 
and  it  is  rather  in  the  so-called  "descriptive" 
music  and  in  the  orchestration  of  the  piece  that 
one  has  to  look  for  Sullivan's  best  achievement. 
Miss  Lucile  Hill  took  the  part  of  the  heroine, 
and  **  Haddon  Hall"  was  also  responsible  for  the 
introduction  to  the  Savoy  of  Mr.  Charles  Ken- 
ningham.  Although  Mr.  Kenningham  had  but 
a  small  part,  he  attracted  no  little  attention  by 
reason  of  his  remarkably  fine  tenor  voice  and 
the  exceptionally  sympathetic  quality  of  his  ren- 
dering. 

In  the  following  year — 1893 — after  four  years 
of  separation,  it  seemed  as  though  there  were  to 
be  a  renewal  of  the  artistic  partnership,  but  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  owing  to  the  same  circumstances 
which  ruled  on  the  previous  occasion,  this  was  to 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  193 

prove  merely  a  temporary  re-union.  The  result 
of  the  renewed  collaboration  was  "  Utopia,  Lim- 
ited," produced  at  the  Savoy  on  October  7,  1893. 

In  this  piece  Miss  Nancy  M'Intosh  made  her 
debut.  Mr.  Walter  Passmore,  who  had  made  his 
first  appearance  at  the  Savoy  in  a  piece  entitled 
"Jane  Annie,"  created  a  very  favourable  impres- 
sion in  "Utopia,"  and  has  by  this  time  estab- 
lished himself  as  a  permanent  favourite.  Al- 
though his  method  seemed  a  little  provincial  at 
first,  he  has  developed  into  a  finished  comedian, 
who  has  nothing  to  fear  from  comparison  with 
his  predecessor,  Mr.  George  Grossmith.  More- 
over, Mr.  Passmore  has  one  great  qualification 
which  by  no  means  necessarily  appertains  to 
those  who  take  part  in  light  opera.  He  is  a 
first-rate  musician. 

For  some  time  the  opera  drew  crowded 
houses.  There  seemed  to  be  little  lacking  to 
ensure  success.  To  begin  with,  the  popular  col- 
laborateurs  had  "  made  friends,"  and  were  once 
more  working  in  unison,  so  that,  as  a  frivo- 
lous journalist  remarked,  one  felt  that  a  "national 
calamity  "  had  been  averted.  No  previous  Savoy 
production,  although  Mr.  Carte  had  never  been 


194  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

behindhand  in  stage-setting,  had  been  so  lavishly 
mounted.  There  was  one  thing  lacking,  how- 
ever, which  precludes  one  from  ranking  "Utopia, 
Limited,"  amongst  the  best  of  the  operas.  The 
libretto  was,  in  effect,  a  repetition  of  much  that 
had  gone  before,  and  with  regard  to  the  music 
there  was  but  little  which  could  be  detached 
from  the  rest  of  the  piece  and  prove  of  perma- 
nent interest  to  the  free  and  independent  vocal- 
ist who  is  ever  with  us. 

Meanwhile,  Tennyson's  "  Foresters  "  had  been 
produced  at  Daly's  Theatre,  for  which  produc- 
tion Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  had  composed  the  inci- 
dental music.  With  regard  to  that  music  I  need 
do  no  more  than  quote  the  critic  of  The  World 
when  he  wrote  that  it  is  "by  far  the  most  beau- 
tiful that  he  [Sullivan]  has  ever  given  to  the 
poetic  and  pastoral  drama.  His  musical  ode, 
'To  Sleep,'  his  forest  songs,  his  manly  English 
carols,  will  live  and  endure  long  after  the  '  Wood- 
land Masque,'  as  an  acting  play,  is  dead,  buried, 
and  forgotten." 

"  The  Chieftain  "  was  produced  at  the  Savoy 
Theatre  on  Wednesday,  December  12,  1894. 
Although  it  is  in  part  an  adaptation  of  "  The 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  195 

Contrabandists,"  written  by  Burnand  and  Sulli- 
van twenty-seven  years  previously,  there  was  a 
good  deal  of  new  work  in  it.  It  could  hardly  be 
said  that  Mr.  Burnand  was  an  adequate  substi- 
tute for  Gilbert  as  librettist,  and,  indeed,  through- 
out the  piece  the  fun  strikes  one  as  thin  and 
transparent;  yet,  on  the  other  hand,  it  will  be 
admitted  that  many  of  the  songs  possessed  the 
true  lyrical  quality,  and  the  musician  is  better 
served  in  this  respect,  to  my  mind,  than  he  has 
been  in  some  other  instances,  as,  for  example,  in 
"Haddon  Hall"  and  "The  Beauty  Stone."  It 
was  only  to  be  expected  that  after  such  a  lapse 
of  time  the  piece  should  seem  a  trifle  antiquated 
and  somewhat  musty  in  flavour.  But  "The 
Chieftain"  is  redeemed  by  some  of  the  extremely 
felicitous  composition  of  the  sort  that  one  has 
learnt  to  expect  from  Sullivan.  There  is,  indeed, 
some  of  the  best  Sullivanesque  throughout  the 
pieces,  as,  for  example,  the  chorus  of  the  gold- 
washers,  the  lover's  duet  in  school-French  and 
English,  the  song,  "  There  is  something  in  that," 
with  its  quartett  refrain  and  the  sestett  for  the 
brigands  "  Be  Mum." 

Once  again    the    coUaborateurs    worked    to- 


196  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

gether  in  "  The  Grand  Duke,"  which  was  pro- 
duced at  the  Savoy  Theatre  on  March  7,  '96. 
The  primadonna  on  this  occasion  was  Madame 
Ilka  von  Palmay.  The  piece  is  memorable  for 
its  wedding  chorus,  and  for  the  vivacious  dance 
music  which  is  interspersed  throughout  the 
opera — the  madrigal,  "  Strange  views  some  peo- 
ple hold,"  and  Julia's  song,  "  Broken  every  prom- 
ise plighted."  It  seems  to  have  been  generally 
admitted  that  the  music  was  the  best  feature  of 
"The  Grand  Duke,"  and  I  must  confess  per- 
sonally that  the  libretto  is  often  remorselessly 
flat  and  commonplace.  The  humour  of  the 
sausage-roll  and  the  fun  of  hard-bake  and 
butter-scotch  is  far  from  inspiriting,  and  to  say 
as  much  is  to  imply  that  the  libretto  is  by  no 
means  in  true  Gilbertian  vein.  The  free  exer- 
cise of  the  blue  pencil  would  have  proved 
highly  advantageous.  In  the  music  one  finds 
even  greater  mastery  of  technique  than  before, 
but  there  is  once  again  an  absence  of  those 
catchy  melodies  which,  as  in  such  works  as  "The 
Mikado,"  "  Pinafore,"  and  "  The  Yeoman  of  the 
Guard,"  have  become  permanently  memorised 
by  the  public. 


ARTHUR   SUr^LIVAJX 

AKTAT.    52. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  197 

"  The  Grand  Duke  "  was  followed  on  May  25, 
'97,  by  a  revival  of  "  The  Yeoman  of  the 
Guard." 

Meanwhile  Sir  Arthur  had  composed  the 
music  for  a  ballet,  entitled  "Victoria  and  Merrie 
England,"  which  was  produced  May  5  at  the  Al- 
hambra.  Here  we  find  the  musician  at  his  best 
in  lighter  vein,  with  his  parody  of  the  old  English 
music,  a  delicious  mazourka,  a  graceful  pas-de- 
deux,  and  other  dances  and  descriptive  music 
which  haunt  the  ear. 

On  March  22,  1898,  a  revival  performance  of 
"The  Gondoliers"  was  initiated;  and  meanwhile 
Sir  Arthur  was  hard  at  work  on  a  new  opera,  the 
libretto  of  which  had  been  written  by  Mr.  Pinero 
and  Mr.  Comyns  Carr,  produced  on  May  28, 
1898.  The  production  is  of  such  recent  occur- 
rence that  it  is  unnecessary  to  point  out  that 
"The  Beauty  Stone"  was  a  departure  from 
Savoy  traditions.  The  central  motive  of  this 
musical  drama  was  a  delightful  one,  and  I  think 
that  some  of  the  music  in  this  work  is  among 
the  best  that  Sir  Arthur  has  written.  Undoubt- 
edly the  piece  suffered  much  by  the  tender  way 
in    which     the     superabundant     dialogue    was 


198  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

treated.  There  is  such  a  superfluity  of  words 
that  the  dramatic  significance  of  the  play  is  often 
lost  sight  of ;  but  I  think  it  will  be  admitted  that 
wherever  the  composer  has  been  given  a  chance 
he  has  made  excellent  use  of  it,  for  what  can  be 
more  charming  than  the  opening  duet  for  the 
old  couple — "  Click,  Clack."  The  "  Invocation 
to  the  Virgin,"  sung  by  the  cripple  girl,  is,  indeed, 
beyond  praise.  It  is  a  masterpiece  of  pure  senti- 
ment and  restrained  pathos.  One  may  perhaps 
add  that  it  was  exquisitely  rendered  by  Miss 
Ruth  Vincent,  who  did  excellent  work  through- 
out the  piece.  It  was,  however,  most  unfortu- 
nate, in  view  of  the  fact  that  the  central  interest 
of  the  story  is  the  love  of  Philip  for  Laine,  that 
the  former  should  have  been  represented  by  an 
American  tenor,  whose  voice  and  stage  presence 
indicated  nothing  in  justification  of  his  selection 
for  the  part. 

The  music  of  "  The  Beauty  Stone  "  is  not,  in- 
deed, of  the  kind  which  would  be  popular 
amongst  the  makers  of  street  organs,  but  it  will 
prove  a  fund  of  delight  to  the  musician.  It  may 
not  be  too  much  to  hope  that  one  day  "  The 
Beauty  Stone  "  may  be  revived,  with  about  half 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  199 

the  libretto  ruthlessly  cut  away,  and  that  the 
heroine  shall  be  supported  by  a  tenor  who  will 
not  only  be  able  to  sing  the  music,  but  who  will 
possess  the  masculine  presence  which  one  is  in- 
clined to  associate  with  the  assumption  of  an 
heroic  character.  Nor  would  it  be  necessary,  in 
such  a  case,  to  have  one's  ear  offended  by  the 
anachronism  of  transatlantic  accent  in  the  spoken 
dialogue  of  a  piece  dealing  with  a  period  con- 
siderably precedent  to  the  discovery  of  America. 


CHAPTER   XI 

OUR  LACK  OF  PATRIOTISM  IN  MUSIC 

THIS  will  of  necessity  be  but  a  short  chapter 
and  one  might  well  wish  that  there  were 
no  occasion  to  write  it.  The  strange 
lack  of  patriotism  shown  in  musical  matters  in 
this  country  is  a  subject  about  which  unfortu- 
nately a  great  deal  might  be  written,  but  it  is 
better,  perhaps,  in  putting  the  matter  once  again 
before  the  public,  and  more  especially  before 
those  "  having  authority,"  to  do  so  very  briefly, 
if  forcibly. 

It  is  a  point  which  Sir  Arthur  has  been  good 
enough  to  discuss  with  me  more  than  once,  but 
on  the  occasion  of  our  last  conversation  it 
chanced  that  the  Society  of  British  Musicians 
had  just  held  a  meeting  at  which  this  subject 
had  been  ventilated,  and  when  I  commented 
on  this  Sir  Arthur  rejoined,  "  Yes,  the  Society 

200 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  201 

of  British  Musicians  is  beginning  to  take  up 
this  question  now,  but  I  have  been  fighting 
this  battle  for  the  past  twenty-five  years.  After 
the  Jubilee  celebration,  for  instance,  I  wrote  a 
letter  to  The  Times  on  the  subject,  signing  my- 
self *  A  British  Musician,'  though  I  imagine  that 
its  authorship  was  an  open  secret. 

"  In  that  long  Jubilee  procession,  regiment 
after  regiment  went  by,  home  and  colonial,  and 
one  day  I  hope  people  will  find  it  almost  impossi- 
ble to  believe  that  not  one  British  tune  could  be 
heard.  It  was  an  occasion  intended  to  be  in 
every  way  representative  of  the  resources  of  the 
British  Empire,  it  was  an  occasion — if  it  meant 
anything — of  patriotism,  but  British  music  had 
no  representation  whatever,  its  claims  were  en- 
tirely ignored.  No  one  will  venture  to  suggest 
that  the  performance  of  foreign  music  exclusive- 
ly on  such  an  occasion  was  due  to  the  fact  that 
there  are  not  plenty  of  good  British  tunes. 
There  are  two  departments  of  music  in  which 
Great  Britain  is  not  excelled  by  any  other 
country — sacred  music  and  stirring  popular 
tunes.  The  Thnes  gave  my  letter  prominence, 
and  bold  type,  but  not  a  single  musical  paper 


202  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

in  England  had  the  courage  to  take  up  the 
question,  and  no  reply  has  been  made  to  that 
letter." 

One  may  fairly  hope,  however,  in  response  to 
Sir  Arthur's  remarks,  that  the  question  will  no 
longer  be  shirked,  least  of  all  by  a  press  so  free 
and  unfettered  in  its  expression  of  opinion  as 
that  of  Great  Britain,  and  while  there  can  be  no 
such  thing  as  insularity  in  matters  of  art,  the 
injury  done  to  the  musical  profession  and  its 
professors  in  this  country  by  this  strange  lack  of 
patriotism  is  so  serious,  and  is  substantiated  by 
personal  evidence  of  so  overwhelming  and  com- 
plete a  character,  that  one  may  be  pardoned  for 
feeling  confident  that  the  statements  made  in 
this  chapter  will  at  least  call  for  discussion,  and 
probably  some  attempt  at  contradiction  by  those 
with  whom  responsibility  rests. 

I  cannot  do  better  than  print  the  letter  to  The 
Times  in  extenso,  and  it  may  be  that  this  time 
the  musical  press  of  this  country  will  regard  the 
question  of  whether  British  musicians  should  or 
should  not  be  employed,  and  whether  British 
music  should  or  should  not  be  played,  as  being 
worthy  of  some  pointed  discussion. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  203 

From  The  Times,  July  19,  1897: — 

MUSIC  AND  THE  JUBILEE. 

TO  THE  EDITOR  OF  The  Times. 

"  Sir, — The  admirable  article  on  the  progress 
of  art  during  the  present  reign,  which  appeared  in 
your  issue  of  last  Saturday,  bears  witness  to  the 
increased  interest  taken  by  the  British  public  in 
all  artistic  subjects.  It  seems  to  me  also  that  the 
increased  development  of  national  feeling  in  art 
— especially  music — is  well  worthy  of  remark. 

"  British  music  and  musicians  have  gained  an 
amount  of  sympathy  from  the  public,  both  here 
and  abroad,  that  was  unthought  of  sixty  years 
ago.  At  that  period  an  English  name  on  a  title- 
page  was  almost  sufficient  at  once  to  condemn  the 
composition. 

"But  this  unfortunate  and  old-fashioned  opinion 
is  apparently  still  held  by  our  military  authorities. 
One  would  think  that  on  such  a  thoroughly 
national  occasion  as  the  Jubilee  they  would  gladly 
display  some  amount  of  national  feeling  in  their 
selection  of  music,  but  such  was  not  the  case. 

'*  For  instance,  at  the  Review  of  Colonial 
Troops  held  by  the  Prince  of  Wales  at  Bucking- 


204  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

ham  Palace  I  noticed  that  the  programme  of  the 
Grenadier  Guards  was  as  follows: — 


March 

"  Under  the  Double  Eagle  " 

.    Wagner 

Overture  . 

.     ,     .      "Zampa"          .     .     . 

.     Herold 

Waltz  .     . 

.    .    "  Weiner  Reigen "       .     . 

.     Gung'l 

Selection  . 

"  Orphee  aux  Enfers  "    .     . 

.     Offenbach 

Waltz    . 

.    .     "  Immortellen"     .    .    . 

.     Gung'l 

"  The  above  might  perhaps  be  an  appropriate 
selection  of  music  for  a  military  review  in  Berlin 
or  Paris,  but  it  is  not  so  apparent  why  such 
pieces  should  be  chosen  to  welcome  our  colonial 
kinsmen  to  their  Fatherland.  I  have  examined 
several  other  similar  programmes,  and  find  to  my 
astonishment  that  British  music  on  these  occa- 
sions (with  two  or  three  exceptions)  has  been 
totally  ignored,  the  preference  in  all  cases  having 
been  given  to  foreign  productions. 

*'  I  have  no  idea  of  depreciating  either  German 
or  French  military  music;  some  of  the  marches 
in  particular  are  rich  in  melody  and  in  accent — 
are  well  harmonized  and  scored,  and  nearly  all 
have  a  go  and  swing  which  render  them  admira- 
ble for  military  purposes  ;  nor  am  I  so  exclusive 
as  to  wish  that  British  music  only  should  be  per- 
formed at  British  musical  entertainments;  but  on 


HIS  LIFE  STORY  205 

great  national  occasions  it  is  not  unreasonable  to 
expect  that  the  public  should  be  reminded  that 
British  tunes  do  exist.  I  know  of  nothing  more 
inspiriting  than  'I'm  Ninety-five,'  'The  Girl  I 
Left  Behind  Me,'  'Hearts of  Oak,'  'The  British 
Grenadiers,'  and  our  whole  rich  collection  of 
Scotch,  Irish,  and  Welsh  national  tunes ;  but 
most  of  these,  at  the  recent  Jubilee  celebration, 
were  conspicuous  by  their  absence.  Yet  which 
would  be  the  most  likely  to  touch  the  sentiment 
of  our  home-coming  brethren,  such  tunes  as 
'  Home,  Sweet  Home '  and  any  of  the  above- 
mentioned,  or  marches  and  waltzes  with  such 
unfamiliar  titles  as  '  Gruss  an  Bayern,'  '  Au 
Secours,'  and  'Unter  dem  Fenster  der  Gelieb- 
ten'  ? 

"It  is  only  in  England  that  such  an  anomaly 
would  be  possible.  It  is  inconceivable  that  at  a 
national  y"//^  in  Berlin  the  German  military  bands 
should  confine  themselves  to  performing  French 
and  Italian  tunes,  or  that  on  a  similar  occasion  in 
Paris  songs  from  the  German  Fatherland  should 
alone  be  heard. 

"  Our  Royal  Family,  and  especially  the  Prince 
of  Wales  and  the  Duke  of  Saxe-Coburg,  have 


2o6  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

laboured  for  many  years  to  foster  and  encourage 
British  musical  art.  One  would  naturally  expect 
that  during  the  Jubilee — the  culminating  point 
in  Her  Majesty's  Record  Reign — all  our  musicians 
would  have  done  their  best  to  show  that  this 
royal  encouragement  has  not  been  thrown  away; 
but  our  military  musical  authorities,  with  a 
unanimity  and  persistency  worthy  of  a  better 
cause,  seemed  to  have  been  determined  to  show 
that  no  practical  results  have  accrued  from  the 
efforts  made  by  our  Royal  Family  on  behalf  of 
British  music. 

"Apologising  for  the  length  of  this  letter, 
which,  I  trust,  may  be  excused  on  the  ground  of 
patriotism  and  a  jealous  regard  for  my  art,  I 
remain,  Sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

"A  British  Musician. 

July  17. 

"  For  my  own  part,"  Sir  Arthur  continued,  "  I 
think  I  may  say  I  have  done  all  that  I  could. 
Some  time  ago  I  was  asked  to  conduct  a  State 
concert  at  short  notice.  I  chose  English  singers 
without  exception.  I  could  not  put  English 
music  exclusively  into  the  programme,  but  I  went 


HIS  LIFE   STORY  207 

as  far  as  I  could  in  that  direction.  I  can  assure 
you  that  to  dispense  with  the  services  of  foreign 
singers  and  foreign  executants  on  such  an  occa- 
sion in  our  own  country  is  a  novelty,  but  not  a 
word  was  written  in  any  of  our  musical  papers  in 
regard  to  the  not  unimportant  fact  that  I  had 
given  English  artists  a  preference.  I  believe 
that  if  I  had  been  backed  up  at  all  in  the  efforts 
which  I  have  made  with  that  end  in  view,  there 
would  have  been  a  great  reform  in  the  direction 
of  a  decent  patriotism  in  music. 

"  Can  you  imagine  foreign  artists  being  em- 
ployed at  a  State  concert  in  Paris  or  Berlin,  or 
conceive  of  French  or  German  soldiers  marching 
to  the  strains  of  English  tunes?  It  is  not  to  be 
thought  of,  but  here  we  act  as  if  England  were 
without  musicians  or  music.  On  such  occasions 
English  music  is  almost  entirely  set  on  one  side 
and  foreign  stuff  substituted.  Now,  as  I  have 
already  indicated,  if  there  is  one  phase  of  music  in 
which  we  are  pre-eminent  it  is  Church  music.  Yet, 
take  the  occasion  of  the  service  in  memory  of  one 
of  our  Royal  Princesses.  The  piece  sung  was  a 
morbid  anthem  of  Gounod's.  In. this  matter  I 
have  not  been  backed  up  by  the  Press,  and  even 


2o8  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

from  my  own  profession  I  have  had   but  little 
support. 

"This  is  by  no  means  a  matter  of  sentiment, 
but  one  of  the  greatest  concern  to  every  English 
musician.  Every  year  we  are  educating  young 
men  and  women.  We  encourage  them  to  take 
musical  honors  and  work  hard  with  a  view  to 
adopting  music  as  a  profession,  and,  having  done 
this,  we  refuse  them  anything  like  fair  opportu- 
nities, and  close  up  the  market.  Sometimes  my 
table  here  is  almost  covered  with  letters  from 
men  and  women,  without  work  and  without 
much  hope  of  getting  it,  not  because  they  are 
incompetent,  but  because  in  musical  matters  it  has 
become  a  convention  with  us  to  give  foreigners  the 
preference.  The  result  of  it  all  is  that,  at  the  pres- 
ent moment  our  schools  of  music  are  turning  out 
highly-trained  paupers.  Personally  I  have  suf- 
fered nothing  from  this  lack  of  patriotism,  but  I 
wish  I  could  believe  that  every  other  British 
musician  is  equally  fortunate.  Every  one  must 
have  noticed  that  foreign  conductors  are  accepted 
here  with  open  arms.  English  conductors  are 
comparatively  few  in  number,  but  when  the 
foreign  conductor  returns  to  his  own   country, 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  209 

taking  English  money  away  with  him,  you  will 
find  that  he  never  reciprocates  by  performing  an 
English  composer's  music,  nor  can  one  be  sur- 
prised if  his  estimate  of  the  ability  of  the  aver- 
age British  musician  is  a  modest  one,  for  if  we 
thought  much  of  our  own  musicians  we  should 
no  doubt  give  them  a  little  encouragement." 

In  regard  to  Sir  Arthur's  reference  to  the 
Press  one  exception  must  be  made,  and  I  am 
shown  a  letter  which  he  had  written  to  the  critic 
in  question,  and  from  which  I  beg  leave  to  quote. 

"  The  few  kindly  words  you  said  in  print  about 
me  the  other  day  are,  I  think,  the  only  public,  or 
rather  published,  testimony  I  have  ever  received 
on  behalf  of  the  efforts  I  have  made  to  advance 
English  music  and  English  musicians.  I  have 
been  at  it  for  years,  and  in  that  matter  am  now 
thoroughly  disheartened,  for  I  have  never  had 
the  smallest  help  or  encouragement  from  the 
Press,  or  even  from  musicians  themselves.  The 
latter  are  listless,  indifferent  ;  the  former  either 
absolutely  neutral,  or  else  actively  favourable  to 
the  foreigner.  There  is  a  strong  party  of  '  Little 
Englanders '  in  music,  who  are  deaf  to  the  merits 
of  the   Englishman    and    the    defects    of    the 


2IO  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

foreigner.  There  is  a  deal  of  nonsense 
talked  about  no  nationality  in  art.  That  is  very 
well,  but  there  is  nationality  in  the  artist,  and  if 
you  offer  me  two  men  of  equal  merit,  I  take  the 
one  who  is  born  and  (probably)  educated  in  Eng- 
land. What  is  the  use  of  founding  scholarships 
and  educating  hundreds  of  young  people  if  you 
shut  all  the  doors  against  them  when  they  are 
ready  to  enter  the  world,  by  choosing  the  for- 
eigner for  everything  ?  When  I  have  the  oppor- 
tunity of  engaging  an  orchestra  I  think  you  will 
find  only  Englishmen  on  the  list,  and  yet  I  always 
get  a  fine  band.  At  the  Leeds  Festival  I  have 
117  men  in  the  orchestra,  and  every  man  is  an 
Englishman.  Is  my  band  at  Leeds  inferior  in 
material  to  that  at  Birmingham,  or  any  other 
great  Festival  ?" 

I  have  discussed  this  very  point  with  other 
musicians,  notably,  for  example,  with  Mr.  Sims 
Reeves,  who  told  me  as  a  curious  instance  of  the 
English  prejudice  against  the  English  in  music 
that,  after  he  had  made  his  debut  (some  sixty 
years  ago),  he  received  a  number  of  letters 
recommending  him  to  adopt  a  foreign  name,  as 
likely  to  prove  helpful  to  him  in  his  vocation  ! 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  an 

Our  lack  of  patriotism  in  music  is  not  a  mat- 
ter for  mere  academic  discussion  amongst  those 
who  suffer  from  the  effect  of  it.  I  found  that 
Mr.  Sims  Reeves  could  have  given  me  many 
personal  instances  of  men  and  women  which 
could  be  added  to  the  many  more  that  Sir  Arthur 
Sullivan  could  have  given  me,  as  unfortunate 
witnesses  to  an  evil  which  one  may  be  sanguine 
enough  to  believe  will  be  remedied  eventually 
by  the  force  of  public  opinion,  and  that  in  this 
way  a  better  patriotism  in  music  will  soon  be 
made  manifest. 


CHAPTER  XII 

PERSONALITY  AND  METHODS  OP  WORK 

THERE  are  many  people  who  decry  any 
attempt  on  the  part  of  the  scribe  to  deal 
with  the  purely  personal.  It  is  an  attitude 
which  is  more  than  justified  in  face  of  a  vulgar 
curiosity  of  the  most  insensate  description.  Those 
who  pander  to  this  indefensible  inquisitiveness 
have  attained  depths  of  banality  almost  beyond 
credence.  As  an  extreme  case  one  might  in- 
stance the  fact  that  quite  recently  the  editor  of  a 
magazine  has  requested  certain  "  celebrities  "  to 
stand  in  a  glutinous  mixture  so  that  their  foot- 
prints may  be  reproduced  for  an  admiring  public. 
Surely  impertinence  can  go  no  further.  One 
might  regard  this  as  quite  an  exceptional  freak 
on  the  part  of  the  brilliant  journalist  who 
engineered  it  were  it  not  for  the  absurd  triviali- 
ties about  people  which  confront  one  on  every 
side,  and  the  feeble  attempts  at  so-called  personal 
description,  which,  while  conveying  nothing  in 

212 


HIS    LIFE   STORY  213 

the  shape  of  sound  comment  or  good  definition, 
are  often  offensive  to  the  unfortunate  man  or 
woman  referred  to.  On  the  other  hand,  I  have 
often  found  that  an  otherwise  justifiable  objec- 
tion to  the  personal  element  in  journalism  and 
literature  has  developed  into  a  pose — the  poseur, 
in  this  instance,  holding  views  on  what  he  may 
term  the  maintenance  of  "  personal  privacy," 
which,  if  pushed  to  their  logical  conclusion  and 
carried  into  effect,  would  deprive  us  of  not  the 
least  interesting  or  least  important  part  of  our 
literature,  and  relegate  the  names  of  many 
eminent  men  and  women  to  oblivion.  Many 
instances  could  be  recalled  of  those  whose  person- 
ality is  remembered  and  whose  influence  is  at  the 
present  moment  of  a  tangible  character,  whilst — 
though  this  does  not  apply  to  the  subject  of  this 
book — they  have  left  no  permanent  record  in  the 
shape  of  achievement  in  science,  letters,  or  art.  If 
there  had  been  no  Boswell  there  would  be,  at  this 
moment,  no  Dr.  Johnson.  Much  might  be  said, 
and  very  fairly,  concerning  the  trivialities,  the  un- 
pleasing  subservience,  and  the  quaint  arrogancies, 
of  the  good  Mr.  Boswell,  but  it  would  be  a  bold 
man  who  would   contend   that   Dr.  Johnson   is 


214  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

greatly  appreciated  as  a  litterateur,  and  that  his 
"  Rasselas,"  his  "  Lives  of  the  Poets,"  or  his 
"Dictionary"  are  widely  read  nowadays,  or  that 
his  works  are  destined  to  hold  a  permanent  posi- 
tion in  literature.  It  is  hardly  safe  to  assume 
that  the  artist  is  anxious  to  be  disassociated  from 
his  art,  and  while  every  insistence  must  be  made 
upon  the  dictates  of  good  taste  and  discretion,  it 
is  only  natural — more  especially  where  we  are 
interested  in  work  which  we  believe  to  be  good, 
which  is  certainly  popular,  and  which  is  probably 
destined  to  be  permanent — that  we  should  feel  a 
corresponding  interest  in  the  worker.  Indeed,  I 
think  one  need  make  no  apology  for  wishing  to 
know  all  about  the  author  or  artist  to  whose  work 
one  feels  indebted.  It  is  no  small  pleasure  to  us 
when  we  find  that  his  life  and  character  bear  out 
what  we  have  deduced  from  his  work,  our  infor- 
mation enhancing  rather  than  interfering  with 
the  ardour  of  our  appreciation. 

Nevertheless,  anything  worth  having  in  the 
shape  of  "personal  description"  demands  the  pen 
of  a  Carlyle,  perhaps  with  something  less  of  his 
acerbity;  and  having  said  this  much,  it  is  not  to 
be  wondered   at   if   I   shrink   from   making  any 


SIK  AKTIIITR   SITLLIVAX 


PKESENT     PAV. 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  315 

attempt  in  this  direction,  or  even  if  I  succeed  in 
entirely  evading  the  issue.  Moreover,  in  some 
measure  the  endeavour  would  be  superfluous,  as 
Sir  Arthur  is  so  well  known  to  the  public.  It 
may  not  be  uninteresting,  however,  and  may  be 
amusing,  to  see  what  outward  seeming  he  has 
borne  to  those  who  have  essayed  the  task  of 
description. 

At  the  end  of  a  biographical  article  which 
appeared  in  a  weekly  paper  long  years  ago,  there 
is  a  paragraph  which  strikes  me  as  piquant. 

"  As  a  singular  fact,  it  may  be  added  that  Mr. 
Sullivan  is  by  no  means  demonstrative  in  the 
concert-room.  Strangely  pale,  the  dead-white  of 
the  forehead  contrasting  remarkably  with  the 
black  hair,  worn  low  on  the  forehead,  and  per- 
fectly self-possessed,  he  presents  himself  without 
any  expression  of  emotion  or  pleasure,  does  his 
work,  and  goes  again,  without  effort,  excitement, 
or  apparent  sense  of  his  position." 

This  paragraph  was  published  is  1871 — just 
twenty-eight  years  ago,  and  it  is  presumably  too 
late  now  to  inquire  what  the  writer  implied  by 
the  suggestion  that  Mr.  Sullivan  showed  "  no 
sense  of  his  position,"  or  had  his  "  position  "  been 


2i6  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

more  clear  to  him,  what  he  would  have  been 
expected  to  do  under  the  circumstances;  but  all 
who  know  Sir  Arthur  will  appreciate  the  point 
which  the  writer  of  the  paragraph  endeavoured 
to  make. 

It  has  been  my  lot,  as  a  mere  item  in  the  mod- 
ern development  of  interview-journalism,  to  come 
into  contact  with  many  men  and  women,  eminent 
in  their  respective  professions,  but  I  have  never 
met  any  one  who  excelled  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan  in 
sincerity,  whole-heartedness,  and  simplicity — as 
indicated  in  the  sense  of  an  entire  absence  of  the 
least  jot  or  tittle  of  mannerism,  affectation,  or 
ostentation.  His  entire  absence  of  pose  and 
prejudice,  his  catholicity  of  taste  and  equitable 
poise  of  temperament,  must  have  been  disappoint- 
ing to  those  who  regard  any  form  of  genius  as 
an  abnormal  development  which  implies  a  sort 
of  lop-sidedness,  forgetful  that  extreme  ability  is 
more  often  the  outcome  of  mind  and  body  work- 
ing in  splendid  harmony  than  the  growth  of  a 
faculty  to  the  exclusion  of  everything  else,  as  if 
it  were  an  extraneous  excrescence.  Level- 
headed and  business-like  to  a  degree,  it  is  but 
rarely,  I  imagine,  that  the  possession  of  so  much 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  217 

common  sense — to  use  that  best-abused  term — is 
allied  to  such  extreme  sensibility,  true  sympathy, 
and  healthy  sentiment.  I  believe  I  shall  not  be 
charged  with  sycophancy  if  I  add  that  his  strong 
will,  his  definiteness  of  purpose,  his  dogged  per- 
sistence, have  often  been  exercised  in  a  manner 
which  does  not  fall  short  of  heroism.  Two  or 
three  of  his  most  popular  operas  have  been  written 
in  the  brief  intervals  of  acute  suffering.  On  two 
occasions  during  his  long  and  arduous  career  the 
accumulated  returns  of  his  work  have  disappeared 
in  a  moment,  but  never  has  anything  occurred  to 
shake  his  fortitude.  The  greatest  success  never 
brought  with  it  any  arrogance  or  modification  of 
his  views.  Of  course  it  pleased  him,  but  it 
brought  no  strange  excitement  with  it,  and  so, 
when  on  that  eventful  day  in  1882,  to  which  I 
have  already  alluded,  he  discovered  that  if  he  had 
been  the  most  unsuccessful  musician  imaginable 
he  could  hardly  have  been  worse  off,  for  he  had 
but  a  few  sovereigns  left  in  the  world,  there  was 
no  sound  of  complaint,  no  alteration  of  demean- 
our, and  not  the  slightest  abatement  of  the  verve 
and  painstaking  care  with  which  he  conducted 
the  first-night  performance  of  "  lolanthe  "  on  the 


2i8  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

self-same  evening  of  that  extremely  dark  day. 
This  is,  indeed,  the  temperament  of  the  man 
who,  in  the  paragraph  which  I  have  quoted, 
"  does  his  work  and  goes  again,  without  effort, 
excitement,  or  apparent  sense  of  his  position,"  as 
the  ingenious  journalist  in  question  has  phrased 
it. 

Perhaps  I  may  absolve  myself  from  sketching 
physiognomical  details,  and  in  place  of  making 
the  attempt  may  be  permitted  to  quote  from  an 
article  written  some  time  ago: 

"  Of  medium  height,  broad-shouldered,  well- 
built,  Dr.  Sullivan  at  once  impresses  you  with  a 
sense  of  power.  The  expression  of  his  face  is 
sympathetic,  it  has  a  touch  of  orientalism,  is 
dark,  and  the  features  are  mobile.  Black  wavy 
hair  is  brushed  away  from  a  compact  intellectual 
forehead.  The  eyes  are  dark,  the  nose  is  sensitive, 
the  jaw  and  chin  indicate  firmness  and  strength 
of  character.  He  is  a  man  with  whom  you  are 
at  home  at  once." 

Here  is  a  statement  which  will  prove  interest- 
ing: 

"  My  chief  companion  in  the  Academy  was 
Arthur  Sullivan,  now  the  famous  operatic  com- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  219 

poser.  Six  years  my  junior,  he  came  fresh  from 
the  Chapel  Royal,  as  merry  and  as  mischievous  a 
boy  as  can  well  be  imagined.  Although  a  huge 
favourite  among  the  students,  he  was  a  sad  thorn 
in  the  side  of  some  of  the  professors,  and  to 
none  more  than  Charles  Lucas,  the  director  of 
the  Academy  orchestra.  It  was  no  unusual 
thing  at  the  rehearsal  to  hear  at  times  the  most 
unearthly  noise  proceed  from  one  instrument 
and  then  the  other,  and  the  reason,  therefore, 
was  usually  summed  up  in  Lucas'  exclamation, 
'  Now,  Sullivan,  you  are  at  it  again,'  which  might 
possibly  have  been  further  from  the  truth.  Sulli- 
van's mastery  over  orchestral  instruments  even 
then,  at  fourteen  years  of  age,  was  marvellous. 
He  played  them  all  with  apparent  ease.  In  an- 
swer to  my  inquiry  where  on  earth  had  he  acquired 
his  skill,  he  replied  that  from  his  babyhood  he 
had  been  a  regular  attendant  at  the  rehearsals 
conducted  by  his  futher  in  the  band-room  of  the 
regiment  of  which  he  was  bandmaster,  and  that 
by  constant  practice  and  his  father's  teaching 
he  had  gradually  overcome  all  difficulties  in  this 
direction.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  he  was  one  of  the 
most  gifted  prodigies  known  to  fame,  and  his 


220  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

facility  in  every  department  was  simply  stupen- 
dous. He  could  read  anything  at  sight,  play  from 
a  formidable  score,  clearly  distinguish  and  declare 
any  and  all  combinations  of  sounds  even  at  the 
very  top  of  the  piano,  without  seeing  the  notes 
struck;  and  he  acccomplished  in  the  line  of  study 
in  five  minutes  what  others  could  not  succeed  in 
doing  in  five  months.  Let  me  add  one  word  of 
testimony  to  his  excellent  character  as  a  man. 
Although  he  and  I  are  now  separated  by  an  al- 
most impassable  gulf,  both  socially  and  musically, 
he  is  one  of  the  best  friends  I  have  in  the  world; 
and  amid  all  the  pressure  of  work,  and,  I  regret 
to  say,  under  the  burden  of  much  sickness,  he 
continues  to  this  day  to  write  me  the  cheeriest 
and  kindest  of  letters,  letters  which  are  alike  a 
credit  to  his  head  and  his  heart.  I  happen  to 
know,  too,  that  his  goodness  of  heart  and  gener- 
osity of  disposition  extend  to  the  whole  brother- 
hood of  musicians,  and  hundreds  of  the  poorer 
brethren  have  good  cause  to  bless  the  name  of 
Arthur  Seymour  Sullivan." 

The  actual  manual  labour  of  musical  composi- 
tion is  exceptionally  hard;  yet,  although  SirAr- 
'  thur  has  certainly  been  extremely  prolific,  he  has 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  221 

found  time  for  many  forms  of  physical  exercise, 
recreation,  study,  wide  reading,  and  travel. 
Shooting,  fishing,  boating,  riding,  and  driving 
have  been  amongst  the  outdoor  exercises  and 
sport  in  which  he  has  delighted,  whilst  indoors 
he  will  take  a  hand  at  billiards,  whist,  or  the  old- 
fashioned  game  of  bezique.  But  reading — and 
fairly  wide  reading — has  provided  his  favourite 
and  most  complete  recreation.  The  works  of 
many  German  and  French  writers  find  an 
honoured  place  on  his  shelves,  together  with  a 
wide  range  of  English  works,  though,  of  course, 
books  dealing  with  musical  history,  biography, 
and  reminiscences  have  a  special  prominence. 
More  than  once  Sir  Arthur  has  told  me  of  his 
antipathy  to  fiction  of  a  morbid  or  decadent 
character.  It  might  be  interesting  to  the  authors 
to  mention  the  titles  of  some  of  the  books  of 
which  the  first  chapter  more  than  sufficed,  but 
one  must  refrain,  although  with  regret. 

Thackeray,  and  Dickens,  more  especially,  are 
permanent  and  evergreen  favourites,  and,  of 
contemporaries,  he  misses  nothingby  Bret  Harte, 
Conan  Doyle,  Stanley  Weyman,  or  Anthony 
Hope.    At  the  time  of  one  of  my  last  interviews 


322  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

with  Sir  Arthur  preparatory  to  the  compilation 
of  this  book  I  found  that  he  was  alternating  the 
latest  volume  of  stories  by  Louis  Becke  with  a 
re-perusal  of  Stanley's  "  In  Darkest  Africa,"  and 
Sir  Arthur  told  me  that  the  books  of  travel  and 
adventure  have  an  increasing  fascination  for  him. 
"  I  often  feel  now  that  I  can  read  nothing  else 
but  books  of  travel,"  he  told  me;  "and  I  am 
reading  every  traveller's  story  that  I  can  lay  my 
hands  on.  In  fiction  I  must  say  that  I  do  like 
what  I  call  healthy  work,"  he  adds  vigorously, 
"and  when  by  any  chance  I  come  across  some- 
thing of  the  other  sort,  I  find  myself  bored  to 
death  if  I  try  to  read  it,  and  cannot  help  specula- 
ting upon  the  attitude  of  mind  and  the  condition 
of  body  of  those  writers  who  are  willing  to  pro- 
duce such  nauseating  and  impotent  stuff."  And, 
as  I  found  myself  so  thoroughly  in  agreement  with 
him  on  this  point  that  there  was  no  room  for 
discussion,  Sir  Arthur  went  on  to  speak  of  the 
perils  and  vicissitudes  endured  and  the  hardihood 
evinced  in  Stanley's  "  long  walk  "  through  the 
Dark  Continent. 

The  description  of  the  way  in  which  Sir  Arthur 
Sullivan's  compositions  are  written  will  form,  I 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  223 

hope,  not  the  least  interesting  part  of  this  book. 
To  many  who  picture  every  composer  as  com- 
pelled to  sit  at  a  piano,  running  his  fingers  over 
the  keys,  seeking  after  inspiration,  it  will  be 
almost  a  shock  to  discover  that,  in  this  instance, 
at  all  events,  the  composer  handles  nothing  but 
pen,  ink,  and  paper. 

"  Of  course  the  use  of  the  piano,"  Sir  Arthur 
remarks,  when  discussing  the  subject,  "  would 
limit  me  terribly,  and  as  to  the  inspirational 
theory,  although  I  admit  that  sometimes  a  happy 
phrase  will  occur  to  one  quite  unexpectedly 
rather  than  as  the  result  of  any  definite  reason- 
ing process,  musical  composition,  like  everything 
else,  is  the  outcome  of  hard  work,  and  there  is 
really  nothing  speculative  nor  spasmodic  about 
it.  Moreover,  the  happy  thoughts  which  seem  to 
come  to  one  only  occur  after  hard  work  and 
steady  persistence.  It  will  always  happen  that 
one  is  better  ready  for  work  needing  inventive- 
ness at  one  time  than  at  another.  One  day  work 
is  hard  and  another  day  it  is  easy,  but  if  I  had 
waited  for  inspiration  I  am  afraid  I  should  have 
done  nothing.  The  miner  does  not  sit  at  the  top 
of  the  shaft  waiting  for  the  coal  to  come  bubbling 


224  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

up  to  the  surface.  One  must  go  deep  down  and 
work  out  every  vein  carefully." 

Sir  Arthur's  methods  would  certainly  seem  to 
be  distinguishable  from  those  of  many  composers 
in  two  directions — his  insistence  upon  rhythm 
before  everything,  and  the  extreme  rapidity  of 
his  work. 

Referring  more  particularly  to  the  famous 
comic  operas,  to  quote  his  own  words: 

"  The  first  thing  I  have  to  decide  upon  is  the 
rhythm,  and  I  arrange  the  rhythm  before  I  come 
to  the  question  of  melody.  As  an  instance  let  us 
take 

"Were  I  thy  bride, 

Then  all  the  world  beside 
Were  not  too  wide 
To  hold  my  wealth  of  love 
Were  I  thy  bride ! 

"  Upon  thy  breast 

My  loving  head  would  rest, 
As  on  her  nest 
The  tender  turtle-dove — 
Were  I  thy  bride ! 

You  will  see  that  as  far  as  the  rhythm  is  con- 
cerned, and  quite  apart  from  the  unlimited  pos- 
sibilities of  melody,  there  are  a  good  many  ways 
of  treating  those  words,"  and  that  I  might  not  be 


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HIS   LIFE   STORY  225 

unconvinced  Sir  Arthur  sat  down  at  his  table  and 
worked  out  the  little  exercises  in  rhythm,  in  the 
form  of  dummy  bars,  reproduced  in  this  chapter. 
This  essay  in  rhythm  will  be  of  interest  to  musi- 
cians, and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  rhythm  given 
last,  as  being  that  ultimately  selected,  is  best 
suited  to  the  sentiment  and  construction  of  the 
lines. 

"  You  see  that  five  out  of  six  methods  were 
commonplace,  and  my  first  aim  has  always  been 
to  get  as  much  originality  as  possible  in  the 
rhythm,  approaching  the  question  of  melody 
afterwards.  Of  course,  melody  may  come  before 
rhythm  with  other  composers,  but  it  is  not  so  with 
me.  If  I  feel  that  I  cannot  get  the  accent  right 
in  any  other  way,  I  mark  out  the  metre  in  dots 
and  dashes,  and  it  is  only  after  I  have  decided 
the  rhythm  that  I  proceed  to  notation. 

"  My  first  work — the  jotting  down  of  the 
melodies — I  term  'sketches.'  They  are  hiero- 
glyphics which,  possibly,  would  seem  undecipher- 
able. It  is  my  musical  shorthand,  and,  of  course, 
it  means  much  to  me.  When  I  have  finished 
these  sketches  the  creative  part  of  my  work  is 
completed.    After  that  comes  the  orchestration, 


226  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

which  is,  of  course,  a  very  essential  part  of  the 
whole  work,  and  entails  some  severe  manual 
labour.  Apart  from  getting  into  the  swing  of 
composition,  it  is  often  an  hour  before  my  hand 
is  steady  enough  to  shape  the  notes  well  and 
with  sufficient  rapidity.  When  I  have  made  a 
beginning,  however,  I  work  very  rapidly. 

"  You  must  remember  that  a  piece  of  music 
which  will  only  take  two  minutes  in  actual  per- 
formance— quick  time — may  necessitate  two  or 
three  days'  hard  work  in  the  mere  manual  labour 
of  orchestration,  apart  from  the  question  of 
composition.  The  literary  man  can  avoid  sheer 
manual  labour  in  a  number  of  ways,  but  you  can- 
not dictate  musical  notation  to  a  secretary. 
Every  note  must  be  written  in  your  own  hand, 
there  is  no  other  way  of  getting  it  done ;  and 
every  opera  means  four  or  five  hundred  folio 
pages  of  music,  every  crotchet  and  quaver  of 
which  has  to  be  written  out  by  the  composer. 
Then,  again,  your  ideas  are  pages  and  pages 
ahead  of  your  poor,  over-worked  fingers." 

To  carry  on  the  description  of  the  method  of 
work  adopted  for  the  operas,  Sir  Arthur  con- 
tinues : 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  227 

"When  the  'sketch'  is  completed,  which 
means  writing,  rewriting,  and  alterations  of 
every  description,  the  work  is  drawn  out  in  so- 
called  '  skeleton  score,'  that  is,  with  all  the  vocal 
parts,  rests  for  symphonies,  &c.,  completed,  but 
without  a  note  of  accompaniment  or  instrumental 
work  of  any  kind,  although,  naturally,  I  have  all 
that  in  mind. 

"  Then  the  voice  parts  are  written  out  by  the 
copyist,  and  the  rehearsals  begin.  On  those 
occasions  I  vamp  an  accompaniment,  or,  in  my 
absence,  the  accompanist  of  the  theatre  does  so. 
It  is  not  until  the  music  has  been  thoroughly 
learnt,  and  the  rehearsals  on  the  stage,  with  the 
necessary  action  and  'business,'  are  well  ad- 
vanced, that  I  begin  orchestration. 

"As  soon  as  the  orchestration  is  finished,  the 
band  parts  are  copied,  two  or  three  rehearsals  of 
the  orchestra  only  are  held,  then  the  orchestra 
and  the  voices  together  without  any  stage  busi- 
ness or  action;  and,  finally,  three  or  four  full 
rehearsals  of  the  complete  work  on  the  stage  are 
enough  to  prepare  the  work  for  presentation  to 
the  public." 

Meanwhile  the  full  score  has  been  taken  in 


228  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

hand,  and  from  it  an  accompaniment  for  the 
voice  parts  has  been  "  reduced  "  for  the  piano, 
so  that  the  "  words  and  music,"  that  is  to  say, 
music  for  the  piano  as  an  accompaniment  to  the 
voice  parts,  is  ready  for  the  public  simultaneously 
with  the  production. 

After  a  full-dress  rehearsal  to  which  the  fa- 
voured few  are  admitted  comes  the  "  first  night," 
when,  as  on  so  many  pleasant  occasions,  we  have 
had  the  privilege  of  seeing  Sir  Arthur  conduct 
the  performance.  Here  the  work  of  the  com- 
poser is  completed.  This  is,  I  think,  a  faithful 
description  of  the  whole  process,  from  the  time 
that  the  libretto  is  handed  by  the  author  to  the 
composer  until  the  eventful  night  when  the  rap 
on  the  desk  of  the  composer's  b^^ton  is  the  signal 
for  the  overture  which  precedes  the  rise  of  the 
curtain. 

In  regard  to  the  rapidity  with  which  much  of 
Sir  Arthur's  work  has  been  accomplished  I  can- 
not do  better  than  quote  some  of  the  instances 
referred  to  by  Mr.  Willeby  in  the  little  mono- 
graph to  which  I  have  already  alluded. 

To  go  back  to  the  extravaganza  **  Cox  and 
Box"  (1866),  as  soon  as  the  composer  had  re- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  229 

ceived  the  manuscript  from  its  author,  Mr.  F.  C. 
Burnand,  he  set  to  work  on  the  music,  and  it  was 
performed  several  times  in  private  ;  but,  as  is  his 
wont  to  this  day,  he  wrote  out  no  accompani- 
ment, preferring,  when  required,  to  extemporise 
one  himself.  Some  time  afterwards  it  was  ar- 
ranged to  perform  the  work  at  the  Adelphi 
Theatre. 

Sullivan  deferred  writing  the  accompaniment 
from  week  to  week,  from  day  to  day,  until  the 
very  last  week  had  arrived,  and  the  performance 
was  announced  for  the  following  Saturday  after- 
noon. Up  to  the  previous  Monday  evening  not 
a  note  for  the  orchestra  had  been  written.  On 
that  night  he  began  to  score,  and  finished  two 
numbers  before  going  to  bed.  On  the  Thursday 
evening  two  more  had  been  completed  and  sent 
to  the  copyist,  so  that  on  Friday  evening,  at 
eight  o'clock,  when  he  sat  down  to  work,  there 
were  still  five  longish  numbers  to  be  scored,  and 
the  parts  to  be  copied.  Then  began  the  tug  of 
war.  Two  copyists  were  sent  for,  and  as  fast  as 
a  sheet  of  score  was  completed  by  the  composer, 
the  copyists  in  another  room  copied  the  parts. 
Throughout  the  night  they  kept  it  up,  until  at 


230       SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

somewhere  about  seven  in  the  morning  Sullivan, 
on  going  into  the  other  room,  found  them  both 
fast  asleep.  He  was  in  despair.  A  moment's 
thought,  however,  decided  him.  One  thing  was 
certain — there  was  no  time  to  score.  There  was 
then  but  one  alternative — to  orchestrate  the  re- 
maining numbers  in  parts.  This  he  did,  and  at 
eleven  in  the  morning  all  was  finished,  and  at 
twelve  the  piece  was  rehearsed. 

What  the  achievement  of  a  feat  of  this  kind 
means,  the  strain  on  the  memory  and  the  appli- 
cation required,  only  a  musician  can  fully  realise. 
But  in  this  respect  he  is,  at  all  events,  in  England, 
unique.  For  rapidity  of  work  Mr.  Willeby 
writes  "  he  may  have  been  equalled  in  the  history 
of  music,  but  I  do  not  think  that  he  has  been  sur- 
passed." 

" Contrabandista,"  which  followed  "Cox  and 
Box,"  was  composed,  scored,  and  rehearsed  with- 
in sixteen  days  from  the  time  he  received  the 
MS.  libretto.  The  overture  to  "  lolanthe  "  was 
begun  at  nine  in  the  morning  and  finished  at 
seven  the  next  morning.  That  to  "  The  Yeoman 
of  the  Guard  "  was  composed  and  scored  in  twelve 
hours,  while  the  magnificent  epilogue  to  "  The 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  231 

Golden  Legend,"  which  for  dignity,  breadth,  and 
power  stands  out  from  amongst  all  of  his  choral 
examples,  was  composed  and  scored  within 
twenty-four  hours.  Merely  to  write  the  number 
of  notes  in  such  a  composition  as  this  would  be 
a  feat  to  most  men,  but  when  all  is  perfection,  as 
it  is  here,  it  is  nothing  short  of  prodigious. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

ANECDOTAL 

In  the  Auction-room — Thirty  years  afterwards  —  Old 
Church  at  Sandhurst  —  Rev.  Thomas  Helmore  and  the 
Boys — Battle  of  the  Alma — Early  Composition — Sterndale 
Bennett  —  Bach's  room  at  Leipzig  —  Amateur  Choral 
Societies — Gladstone  and  Disraeli — Burnand  and  his  book 
— Byron  and  Palgrave — With  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  on 
the  Hercules  —  The  German  Emperor  —  Peterhof  —  In 
the  Baltic — Buffalo  etiquette — "The  Mikado"  plagiarised 
in  real  life — Water  and  Good  Society — The  Gentlemanly 
Guide  —  Earthquake  at  Monte  Carlo  —  Coincidences  — 
Tennyson — Sullivan's  Grand-parents  and  Napoleon  I.  at 
St.  Helena. 

IT  has  been  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan's  habit  when 
writing  an  opera  or  other  big  work,  to  take 
a  house  in  the  country  for  two  or  three 
months,  driven  from  London  by  the  curse  of 
street  music.  Except  for  this  chapter,  this  book 
had  been  passed  for  the  printer  and  made  up  into 
pages  by  the  time  Sir  Arthur  had  left  town  for 
Wokingham,  where  he  had  taken  a  house,  which, 
at  the  time  of  writing — the  end  of  September 

1899 — he   is   now  occupying  while   at   work   on 

232 


ANECDOTAL  233 

his  new  opera  for  the  Savoy  Theatre.  After 
returning  me  the  corrected  proofs  of  that  part  of 
the  book  dealing  with  facts,  Sir  Arthur  was  good 
enough  to  invite  me  to  spend  a  day  with  him  at 
his  place  at  Wokingham  in  order  that  we  might 
have  a  final  conversation  in  regard  to  this  book. 
Hence  it  happens  that  the  many  interesting 
anecdotes  which  he  told  me  after  lunch,  while  we 
were  discussing  tea  and  cigarettes  on  the  lawn, 
find  their  place,  in  fragmentary  fashion,  in  this 
supplementary  chapter,  instead  of  being  inserted 
in  their  proper  sequence  in  the  precedingchapters. 
In  order  to  make  a  virtue  of  necessity  it  may  be 
hinted  that  there  are  some  who  may  prefer  a 
number  of  anecdotes  put  together  by  way  of 
dessert,  after  the  more  serious  courses  of  the 
meal  which  have  preceded  it,  and  those  who 
prefer  a  more  methodical  manner  may  perhaps 
find  it  possible  to  excuse  the  inevitable. 


"  One  of  the  earliest  incidents  which  made  an 
impression  upon  me  in  childhood  was  that  which 
was  known  as  the  Frimley  murder.  Frimley  was 
a  village  about  two  miles  from  where  we  lived. 


234  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Burglars  had  broken  into  the  rectory  in  the 
middle  of  the  night,  and  in  the  course  of  the 
struggle  which  ensued,  shot  at  and  killed  the 
rector,  Mr.  Holiest.  My  brother,  who  went  to  a 
school  close  by  there,  when  coming  home  in  the 
evening,  noticed  three  strange  men  standing  out- 
side a  little  public-house,  and  as  in  those  days 
every  face  was  known  for  miles  round,  he  was 
struck  by  their  appearance,  and  as  soon  as  he 
arrived  home,  he  told  us  that  he  had  seen  three 
dreadful-looking  men  in  the  village.  This  was  in 
the  late  afternoon,  and  at  the  time  he  saw  them 
they  must  have  been  contemplating  the  burglary 
which  resulted  in  murder  that  night.  The  men 
were  brought  to  trial,  and  I  think  all  three  were 
hanged,  but  the  capture  effected  the  discovery 
and  break-up  of  a  considerable  gang  of  burglars 
and  thieves. 

"  Subsequent  to  the  murder  an  auction  of  the 
household  goods  was  held  at  the  rectory,  and  I 
went  over  with  my  mother  to  the  sale.  For 
some  reason  or  other  we  became  separated  for  a 
time,  and  not  long  afterwards  an  acquaintance 
came  up  to  my  mother  and  said  to  her:  '  Mrs. 
Sullivan,  do  you  know  that  your  son  is  bidding 


ANECDOTAL  235 

in  the  auction-room? '  I  was  about  eight  years  of 
age  at  the  time.  My  mother  hurried  to  the 
auction-room  and  found  that  what  her  acquaint- 
ance had  told  her  was  perfectly  true.  I  had 
already  acquired  a  pair  of  leather  hunting- 
breeches,  at  eighteenpence,  a  flat  candlestick 
and  a  pair  of  snuffers  which  had  taken  my  fancy, 
and  was  then  bidding  for  a  sofa!  Why  I  bid  for 
these  things  I  have  no  idea.  I  should  have  been 
swallowed  up  in  the  breeches,  I  had  no  use  for  flat 
candlesticks,  and  I  don't  know  who  would  have 
found  room  for  the  sofa.  I  had  no  money,  but 
finding  that  some  of  the  people  were  nodding 
their  heads  and  saying  *  Sixpence,'  I  did  the 
same,  with  the  notion  of  acquiring  something  of 
value.  My  mother  acted  promptly,  and  the 
auctioneer  was  bound  to  take  the  things  back,  as 
I  was  under  age. 

"  It  is  a  curious  thing,"  Sir  Arthur  continues, 
"that  I  came  to  write  'The  Golden  Legend' 
in  the  house  where  I  had  lived  as  a  child.  I 
was  about  three  years  of  age  when  my  father 
went  to  Sandhurst,  and  we  had  rooms  in  the 
college.  A  few  years  later  when  my  brother 
and  I  grew  older  we  took  two  cottages  in  York 


836  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Town,  threw  them  into  one,  and  lived  there  until 
1858,  when  my  father  joined  the  staff  at  Kneller 
Hall.  Well,  it  was  a  curious  coincidence  that  in 
1886,  when  I  wrote  to  some  friends  living  in  that 
part,  asking  them  to  find  me  some  quiet  country 
lodgings,  so  that  I  might  peacefully  write  *  The 
Golden  Legend,'  they  took  rooms  for  me  in  the 
very  house  at  York  Town  where  I  had  lived 
as  a  child.  So  it  happened,  quite  without  any 
initiative  of  my  own  in  the  matter,  that,  thirty 
years  afterwards,  I  found  myself  doing  my  work 
in  the  same  house." 


"  Sometimes  I  used  to  go  to  Sunday  afternoon 
service  at  the  old  church  at  Sandhurst.  The 
church  was  old  in  every  respect :  old-fashioned, 
high-backed,  whitewashed  pews,  with  a  gallery  at 
one  end  of  the  church  for  the  musicians.  What 
used  to  interest  me  most  was  the  little  ceremony 
which  the  clerk  performed  so  solemnly  in  regard 
to  the  hymns.  After  he  had,  from  his  desk 
underneath  the  pulpit,  given  out  the  hymn, 
always  selected  from  Tate  and  Brady's  Psalter, 
he  would  walk  slowly  and  solemnly  to  the  other 


ANECDOTAL  237 

end  of  the  church,  mount  to  the  large  empty 
gallery  by  means  of  a  ladder,  and  picking 
up  his  clarionet,  would  lead  the  musical  accom- 
paniment, which  consisted  only  of  his  own 
instrument,  the  clarionet,  a  bassoon,  and  a 
violoncello  ! 

"  I  also  remember  going  by  coach  from  York 
Town  to  London  to  see  the  Great  Exhibition  of 
185 1,  and  returning  in  the  same  manner.  There 
was  no  railway  near  us." 


"  I  always  recall  my  old  master,  the  Rev. 
Thomas  Helmore,  with  affection  and  respect.  I 
was  greatly  influenced  by  his  great  idea  of  relying 
upon  the  boys'  sense  of  honour,  and  he  certainly 
did  make  us  vefy  conscientious  in  the  perform- 
ance of  our  work.  We  had  to  practise  the  music 
for  the  Chapel  Royal  service  every  Saturday 
morning  for  the  following  day.  He  would  say  to 
us,  '  Now,  boys,  if  you  get  the  music  thoroughly 
well  done  you  may  go  as  soon  as  you  like. 
There  will  be  no  need  for  you  to  stay  in  during 
the  afternoon.'  I  directed  the  practice  of  the 
music,  whilst  my  schoolfellow,  Alfred  Cellier, 


238  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

played  the  accompaniments.  It  was,  I  think, 
something  to  our  credit  and  to  the  credit  of 
Helmore's  manner  of  dealing  with  us,  that  with 
the  temptation  of  an  afternoon's  holiday  in  front 
of  us  we  never  scamped  anything,  and  on  more 
than  one  occasion,  we  stayed  on  well  into  the 
late  afternoon  in  order  to  get  the  music  cor- 
rectly. Nor  did  we  have  any  assistance  of  any 
kind.     Helmore  relied  upon  Cellier  and  myself. 

"  No,  we  never  had  any  rehearsal  of  the  Sunday 
service  with  the  men  during  the  whole  time  I  was 
at  the  Chapel  Royal.  The  actual  service  was  the 
only  occasion  that  the  boys  and  men  sang  the 
music  together. 

"One  day  in  1854  Helmore  came  into  the 
schoolroom  and  said,  '  Put  away  your  books, 
boys.  I  am  going  to  give  you  the  best  lesson  in 
English  history  you  have  ever  had.'  He  then  sat 
down,  and,  producing  the  Times  newspaper  from 
his  pocket,  read  us  the  account  of  the  battle  of 
the  Alma,  described  so  graphically  by  my  old 
friend,  Dr.  W.  H.  Russell.  Sometimes  the  tears 
rolled  down  his  cheeks,  and  down  ours,  too,  as 
he  read  the  account  of  some  of  the  daring  deeds 
and   instances  of  heroism  of  our   men  at  the 


ANECDOTAL  239 

battle  of  Alma.    At  that  time  the  use  of  the 

telegraph   had   not   discounted   beforehand  the 
interest  in  these  brilliant  letters." 


"  I  remember  singing  for  Sir  Henry  Bishop  at 
some  benefit  concerts  which  were  organized  for 
him.  Old  John  Braham  came  and  heard  me 
sing,  and  praised  me  very  much  afterwards.  He 
was  a  very  old  man  at  the  time,  and  had  long 
given  up  singing  'The  Death  of  Nelson,'  and 
other  similar  songs,  chronicling  events  which 
took  place  in  his  own  lifetime." 


"  I  was  always  composing  in  those  days. 
Every  spare  moment  I  could  get  I  utilized  for  it. 
A  short  time  ago  I  came  across  a  four-part 
madrigal  in  an  old  manuscript  book  perfectly 
complete,  and  scribbled  across  it  is,  '  Written  on 
my  bed  at  night  in  deadly  fear  lest  Helmore 
should  come  in  and  catch  me.' " 


"The  instruction  at  the  Royal  Academy  of 
Music   in   those   days   was,   perhaps,   somewhat 


240  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

desultory.  ...  I  remember  how  we  would  wait 
there  for  Sterndale  Bennett  from  five  o'clock 
until  seven  in  the  evening,  until  the  message 
would  come  to  ask  us  to  kindly  go  up  to  his 
house  in  Russell  Place,  and  then,  although  he 
was  weary  from  teaching  all  day,  he  would  give 
us  some  interesting  lessons,  telling  us  his  expe- 
rience of  intercourse  with  various  great  com- 
posers. His  wife  was  a  most  charming  woman, 
and  when  I  was  there  late,  she  invariably  made 
me  stay  to  supper  with  him.  I  must  say  that  I 
enjoyed  these  evenings  immensely.  There  was 
something  very  instructive  and  fascinating  about 
Bennett's  personality.  He  was,  however,  bitterly 
prejudiced  against  the  new  school  as  he  called 
it.  He  would  not  have  a  note  of  Schumann, 
and  as  for  Wagner,  he  was  outside  the  pale  of 
criticism!  Cipriani  Potter  was  converted,  and 
became  a  blind  worshipper  of  Schumann,  but  all 
my  efforts  with  Sterndale  Bennett  were  inef- 
fectual. My  master  for  harmony  and  composi- 
tion, Sir  John  Goss,  was  more  eclectic  in  his 
taste,  and  more  open  to  conviction.  I  am 
eternally  grateful  to  him ;  he  had  a  wonderful 
gift  of  part    writing,    and  whatever    facility  I 


ANECDOTAL  241 

possess   in   this   respect  I   owe   entirely  to   his 
teaching  and  influence." 


"At  Leipzig  I  frequently  went  to  Hauptmann's 
house  for  lessons  in  counterpoint,  and  took  them 
in  the  very  room  where  Bach  wrote  all  his  great 
works  when  in  Leipzig,  so  you  can  imagine  the 
atmosphere  of  that  room  as  being  impregnated 
with  counterpoint  and  fugue. 

"When  I  came  back  to  England  at  that  time 
small  choral  societies  which  met  at  private  houses 
were  much  in  vogue.  I  conducted  many  of  these. 
Sometimes  we  met  at  Mr.  Gladstone's  house  in 
Carlton  House  Terrace.  Occasionally  he  took 
part  in  the  choruses.  I  had  the  honour  on  two 
occasions,"  Sir  Arthur  adds  smilingly,  "  of  sing- 
ing bass  with  him  from  the  same  copy.  .  .  .  Once 
as  the  result  of  our  continual  practice  a  perform- 
ance of  '  The  Prodigal  Son'  was  given  at  a  lady's 
house  in  Grosvenor  Place.  Of  course  all  the 
chorus  were  amateurs,  and  the  principal  parts 
were  taken  by  the  more  distinguished  well- 
known  amateurs  of  the  day.  The  house  was 
crowded.     It  was  a  hot  night,  and  all  the  win- 


842  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

dows  were  open.  Our  first  mishap  was  that 
when  the  lady  (Mrs.  Moulton^)  who  was  to  sing 
the  soprano  part  arrived,  she  found  the  place  so 
crowded  that  she  could  not  get  up  the  stairs,  so 
went  away,  and  her  part  was  taken  by  another 
lady  who  generously  volunteered.  The  second 
blot  on  the  performance  was  that  just  as  the 
tenor  was  singing  the  pathetic  solo,  '  I  will  arise 
and  go  to  my  father,  and  will  say  unto  him,'  he 
was  overpowered  by  the  linkman's  voice,  who 
bellowed  :  '  Mrs.  Johnson's  carriage  stops  the 
way.'  It  came  in  so  appositely  that  the  interrup- 
tion proved  too  much  for  our  gravity,  and  the 
performance  was  very  nearly  temporarily  sus- 
pended." 


The  mention  of  Gladstone's  name  called  up 
another  reminiscence  which  the  reader  may  or 
may  not  find  illustrative  of  two  types  of  character. 
"  I  was  dining  at  the  late  Baron  Meyer  de  Roths- 
child's," remarks  Sir  Arthur,  "  and  Mr.  Disraeli 
was  present.  After  the  ladies  had  left  the  table 
I  found  myself  next  to  him,  and  the  conversation 

'  A  celebrated  amateur  vocalist,  now  Countess  Daneskiold. 


ANECDOTAL  243 

had  become  general :  he  turned  to  me  with  the 
remark  that  the  process  of  musical  composition 
had  always  been  a  matter  of  mystery  to  him,  and 
begged  me  to  explain  it.  Of  course  I  complied 
to  the  best  of  my  ability,  telling  him  that  when 
the  composer  sat  down  to  write,  he  could,  as  it 
were,  plainly  hear  and  judge  of  the  effect  of 
every  note  and  every  combination  of  notes  men- 
tally, without  their  being  sounded,  just  as  an 
author  hears  the  words  he  is  writing,  and  so  on, 
and  tried  my  best  to  talk  well.  At  the  end  of  it 
Disraeli  said  to  me  :  '  Well,  it  is  still  a  wonder 
to  me,  but  you  have  made  many  things  much 
clearer  to  me  than  they  were  before.'  Of  course 
I  felt  quite  elated  and  very  well  pleased  with 
myself.  Well,  it  happened  that,  a  short  time 
after  my  chat  with  Disraeli,  Mr.  Gladstone  in- 
vited me  to  breakfast.  We  had  not  gone  very 
far  with  the  breakfast  when  Mr.  Gladstone  put 
precisely  the  same  question  to  me.  I  set  out  to 
give  much  the  same  reply  that  I  had  given  Dis- 
raeli, but  I  had  not  uttered  six  words  before 
Gladstone  interrupted  me  and  proceeded  to 
give  an  eloquent  discourse  on  the  subject  of 
musical  composition.     He  was  very  animated, 


244  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

and  it  was  very  interesting.  No  doubt  I  could 
not  have  told  him  so  much  about  it  myself,  but 
you  can  imagine  which  incident  would  best  please 
a  young  man." 

*  *  *  * 

"  Frank  Burnand  and  I  used  to  ride  on  horse- 
back together  two  or  three  times  a  week.  One 
day,  when  we  had  got  as  far  as  Merton,  his  horse 
stumbled  and  very  nearly  threw  him,  but  after 
getting  off  and  walking  a  little  way,  he  re- 
mounted, only  to  find  himself  compelled  to  dis- 
mount immediately,  as  the  horse  had  gone  dead 
lame.  'Well,  this  is  a  nice  thing!'  he  said, 
'what  am  I  to  do?'  and  good-humouredly  ex- 
claimed, '  Happy  thought !  Walk  ! '  and  so  he 
went  on  enunciating  all  sorts  of  notions,  preced- 
ing each  new  suggestion  with  the  exclamation, 
'  Happy  thought !'  This  incident  gave  him  the 
idea  of  using  the  phrase  for  the  brilliant  series 
of  papers  which  became  so  deservedly  popular." 

"  Byron  was  constantly  saying  rather  sharp 
things.  One  night  I  was  at  the  late  Charles 
Mathews'  house,  and  amongst  the  amusements 


ANECDOTAL  345 

provided  for  the  visitors  was  a  raffle  for  penny 
toys.  You  drew  a  paper,  and,  if  successful,  made 
your  selection.  Palgrave  Simpson,  the  dramatic 
author,  drew  a  prize,  and  said,  in  his  finnicking 
way  '  Dear,  dear  me !  What  shall  I  choose 
amongst  these?'  Byron  immediately  took  up  a 
penny  sword,  pulled  it  out  of  its  sheath,  and  ex- 
claimed, '  Take  this,  Palgrave :  you  need  some- 
thing that  will  draw,'  which  was  rather  hard  upon 
Palgrave,  who  had  just  perpetrated  a  dead 
failure." 


"  One  of  my  pleasantest  recollections  is  a  cruise 
I  had  in  1881  on  the  Hercules.  When  the 
Duke  of  Edinburgh  was  in  command  of  the 
Reserve  Squadron  he  very  kindly  invited  me  to 
go  with  him  on  his  annual  cruise  in  the  Baltic. 
This  proved  very  interesting  indeed.  Kiel  was 
the  first  place  we  landed  at.  We  were  met  by 
Prince  William  of  Prussia,  now  Emperor  of  Ger- 
many, and  his  brother  Prince  Henry.  The  Duke 
of  Edinburgh  presented  me  to  Prince  William, 
who  shook  me  cordially  by  the  hand,  and  said — 
quoting '  H.M.S.  Pinafore' — 'I  think  you  polished 


246  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

up  the  handle  of  the  big  front  door,  did  you  not, 
Mr.  Sullivan  ?' 

"From  thence  we  went  on  to  Copenhagen. 
Here  I  was  much  impressed  with  the  popularity 
of  the  Royal  Family  and  the  homely  way  in  which 
they  mixed  with  the  people.  We  dined  at  the 
Hermitage,  one  of  the  royal  palaces  situated  a 
little  way  outside  Copenhagen.  The  windows 
were  wide  open,  the  people  walking  about  the 
park  and  sometimes  coming  right  up  to  the 
windows,  but  they  never  stared  in,  and  were 
never  guilty  of  the  slightest  shadow  of  disrespect 
or  inquisitiveness.  The  next  evening  was  the  oc- 
casion of  a  greatykV^  at  the  Tivoli  Gardens.  There 
must  have  been  about  ten  or  twelve  thousand 
people  there.  The  King  and  Queen  did  not  go, 
but  the  Crown  Prince  went  with  us  and  mixed 
freely  with  everybody,  and  was  subject  to  no  awk- 
ward attention  of  any  sort.  The  King  and  Queen 
of  Denmark  were  the  most  kind  and  fascinating 
people  I  have  ever  met. 

"Afterwards  we  went  on  to  St.  Petersburg, 
where  we  arrived  shortly  after  that  terrible 
tragedy,  the  assassination  of  the  Emperor.  As  it 
was  the  dead  season  of  the  year  there  was  no  one 


ANECDOTAL  247 

at  St.  Petersburg.  The  Emperor  and  Empress 
were  living  at  Peterhof,  and  so  we — the  Duke  of 
Edinburgh  and  party — stayed  at  Peterhof.  The 
Emperor  and  Empress  lived  in  a  villa  close  to  us. 
They  could  not  stay  in  the  palace  because  it  could 
not  be  surrounded  by  sentries.  It  was  quite  a 
terrible  business.  Every  few  steps  one  took  one 
was  met  by  a  policeman,  Cossack,  or  guard.  I 
had  an  official  pass,  written  in  Russian  and  with 
a  big  seal  attached  to  it,  and  I  was  told  never  to 
go  outside  the  door  without  it.  The  place  was  in 
a  state  of  ferment.  The  Emperor  himself  was 
brave  enough,  but  those  about  him  would  not  let 
him  go  out  without  a  strong  guard  to  surround 
him  all  the  time. 

"  On  our  way  back  we  were  caught  by  a  thick 
fog  in  the  Baltic  which  lasted  for  thirty  hours. 
During  that  time  the  Admiral  was  scarcely  ever 
absent  from  the  bridge,  and  took  no  rest  at  all. 
It  was  no  small  responsibility;  '  Eight  ironclads, 
some  thousands  of  lives,  and  a  musical  com- 
poser!' to  quote  his  Royal  Highness'  words." 

Speaking  of  his  experiences  with  Gilbert  in 


248  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

America,  Sir  Arthur  tells  me :  "  Gilbert  and  I 
arrived  at  Buffalo  early  one  winter  morning.  We 
went  to  a  hotel,  the  Tifft  House,  and  walked 
upstairs  to  our  rooms.  We  wanted  the  fires  lit, 
upon  which  the  maid  told  us,  with  great  dignity 
and  condescension,  that  'the  gentleman' — allud- 
ing to  the  colored  servant — would  do  that  for  us. 
He  did,  but  before  he  had  finished  the  maid  came 
up  again,  and  ejaculated,  'Either  of  you  men  got 
any  washing?  the  gentleman  has  called  for  it,' 
to  which  we  replied,  with  delicate  irony,  'When 
this  gentleman  has  finished  lighting  the  fires  he 
will  probably  be  kind  enough  to  take  the  washing 
down  to  the  gentleman  who  is  waiting  to  take  it 
away,'  and  then  we  subsided." 


"  When  I  was  at  Los  Angeles  a  curious  thing 
had  just  occurred.  It  seems  there  was  a  little  bit 
of  land  between  California  and  Mexico  which,  by 
some  accident,  had  been  left  out  of  the  United 
States  survey.  The  result  was  that  no  one  quite 
knew  who  had  jurisdiction,  but  there  was  one  man 
who  was  Judge,  Sheriff,  and  Executioner,  besides 
being  anything  else  that  was  considered  requisite 


ANECDOTAL  249 

for  the  proper  carrying  out  of  the  law.  One  day 
a  Mexican  killed  another  man.  There  was  no 
doubt  about  it.  He  was  brought  up  before  our 
friend  of  the  multiple  offices,  who  tried  him 
and  sentenced  him  to  death.  Meanwhile  there 
was  no  likelihood  of  the  man  running  away,  so  he 
was  left  perfectly  free,  and  told  that  his  execution 
would  take  place  within  three  days  of  sentence. 
When  the  day  arrived,  the  Judge,  being  his  own 
Sheriff,  went  to  look  for  him,  and  having  found 
him,  said,  '  Come  along,  Juan  Baptisto!  Time's 
up!'  But  Juan  was  engaged  in  a  very  exciting 
game  of  euchre,  and  asked  the  Judge  for  permis- 
sion to  finish  the  game.  The  Judge,  being  a  bit 
of  a  sportsman,  acceded,  and  I  am  not  sure  that 
he  did  not  take  a  hand  in  it  himself.  As  soon  as 
the  game  was  over  Juan  declared  himself  ready, 
and  within  a  few  minutes  afterwards  the  Judge 
and  Sheriff  satisfactorily  performed  his  duty  as 
hangman."  It  should  be  added  that  "  The 
Mikado"  had  been  produced  some  time  before 
this  occurrence." 

3(c  :(:  :((  :|e 

"  When  in  the  train  one  day,  travelling  from 


250  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Salt  Lake  City  to  Sacramento,  while  passing 
through  the  great  Alkali  Desert,  I  remarked  upon 
it  to  another  man  in  the  carriage — there  were 
only  three  of  us — and  said,  '  I  suppose  that's  all 
right  in  its  way.  It's  a  pity  it  can't  be  utilized? ' 
to  which  my  friend  replied,  '  Yes,  the  soil  is  good 
enough;  plenty  of  water  and  good  society  would 
make  it  a  regular  Paradise.'  Then  the  other  man, 
who  had  been  silent  hitherto,  said  drily,  pointing 
his  forefinger  downwards,  'Yes,  that's  all  the  other 
place  wants!' " 


"When  we  were  at  Naples,  my  travelling  com- 
panions and  myself  went  outside  the  hotel,  after 
dinner,  not  quite  knowing  how  best  we  could 
spend  the  evening.  In  the  porch  of  the  hotel 
we  noticed  a  most  dignified-looking  gentleman  in 
black  frock  coat  and  tall  hat,  resembling  an  Eng- 
lish clergyman  in  his  dress  and  the  gravity  of  his 
appearance.  Raising  his  hat,  he  said,  *  Do  you 
want  a  guide?  and  told  us  that  he  knew  every- 
thing to  be  seen  in  the  city  or  its  environs.  On 
our  replying  '  No,  not  just  at  present,'  he  handed 
us  a  card  which  (I  suppress  the  real  name)  read 


ANECDOTAL  251 

as  follows :  '  Vermicelli  Giovanni,  Organisateur 
de  Menus  Plaisirs,   Napoli.'     What  a  delicate 

name  for  his  real  profession!  " 

*  *  *  * 

**  I  was  at  Monte  Carlo  when  the  earthquake 
took  place  at  6:10  a.m.  The  hotel  in  which  I 
was  staying  suffered  little  damage,  but  it  was 
shaken  severely.  The  effect  of  it  was  as  if  a 
giant  had  taken  hold  of  the  house,  shaken  it, 
then  had  paused  to  take  breath,  shaken  it 
again  with  a  more  rapid  movement,  and  then 
repeated  the  performance  for  the  third  time 
with  increased  energy.  Every  one  was  running 
about  in  night  attire.  We  had  several  shocks 
within  the  next  two  or  three  hours,  and  I  had  a 
curious  feeling  of  annoyance  at  being  disturbed, 
rather  than  fear.  The  next  day  all  Monte 
Carlo  seemed  to  have  turned  out.  The  poorer 
people  had  lit  fires  and  camped  out  on  the 
grass,  and  when  night  came  one  could  see 
them  there  offering  up  prayers  to  the  Virgin. 
When  a  further  shock  came  later  in  the  morn- 
ing, I  was  standing  at  a  window  of  the  hotel, 
and  seeing  the  trees  swaying  from  side  to 
side  made  me  feel  actually  sick,  as  if  at  sea." 


252  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

*'  Some  years  ago  there  was  a  series  of  dis- 
asters in  the  south  of  France,  but  very  few  have 
noted  the  following  extraordinary  coincidences 
in  regard  to  it.  The  terrible  railway  accident 
at  Monte  Carlo  occurred  on  a  Shrove  Tuesday 
evening.  The  next  year,  on  Shrove  Tuesday 
evening,  the  theatre  at  Nice  was  burned  down, 
causing  a  fearful  sacrifice  of  life;  and  again  on 
Shrove  Tuesday  in  the  third  year  came  the 
great  earthquake  in  the  Riviera." 

*  *  *  * 

Sir  Arthur  is  able  to  furnish  me  with  some 
information  throwing  an  extremely  interesting 
side-light  on  history  in  regard  to  Napoleon  I., 
as  follows: 

"My  grandfather  was  born  126  years  ago  in 
the  county  of  Kerry.  He  was  an  impoverished 
young  Irish  squire,  much  given  to  steeple- 
chasing.  One  day  he  won  a  noteworthy  steeple- 
chase, and  riding  homewards  he  stopped  at  a 
little  village  inn  to  celebrate  the  event.  This 
he  did,  as  was  the  wine-bibbing  custom  in  those 
days,  somewhat  too  freely.  At  that  time  every 
able-bodied  man  was  being  pressed  into  the 
Queen's  service.    There  happened  to  be  a  re- 


ANECDOTAL  253 

cruiting-sergeant  in  the  inn,  who  pressed  the 
Queen's  shilling  into  my  grandfather's  hand. 
The  next  morning  when  he  awoke  from  his 
heavy  sleep  he  discovered  that  he  had  enlisted. 
There  was  no  help  for  it.  Unfortunately  he  had 
just  married  the  handsome  daughter  of  a  well- 
to-do  farmer,  but  the  farmer  absolutely  declined 
to  buy  his  discharge,  and  having  no  money 
himself,  there  was  nothing  to  be  done  but  to 
submit  to  the  inevitable.  He  was  immediately 
ordered  off  for  foreign  service,  and  took  part  in 
the  Peninsular  campaign,  and  behaved  with  dis- 
tinction at  Vittoria,  Salamanca,  and  Badajos. 
These  engagements  thinned  out  the  regiment 
so  much  that  it  was  ordered  home  to  the 
depot. 

"  After  the  battle  of  Waterloo  my  grandfather 
was  ordered  with  a  detachment  of  his  regiment 
to  St.  Helena,  and  his  wife  accompanied  him. 
At  first  they  lived  in  the  regimental  quarters 
close  to  Longwood,  where  Napoleon  lived, 
and  while  there  a  child  was  born  to  my 
grandmother.  During  her  confinement  one  of 
the  soldiers  was  sentenced  to  receive  twenty- 
five  lashes   for  being  drunk   on  duty,  but  the 


254  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

doctor  declared  that  his  cries  would  make  my 
grandmother  very  ill,  so  he  was  taken  down 
from  the  triangle,  let  off,  and  was  eternally 
grateful  to  my  grandmother.  Amongst  Napo- 
leon's companions  were  General  Bertrand,  the 
Comte  and  Comtesse  Montholon,  faithful  adher- 
ents, who  preferred  to  share  their  exile  with 
Napoleon,  and  there  was  also  his  valet,  Las 
Casas.  The  Comtesse  Montholon  was  confined 
about  the  same  time  as  my  grandmother,  and 
being  very  ill,  could  not  nurse  her  child.  My 
grandmother,  who  was  strong  and  healthy, 
offered  to  nurse  the  child  with  her  own,  and 
so  removed  to  Longwood,  where  she  and  her 
husband  remained  until  Napoleon's  death,  and 
my  grandfather — who  was  a  man  of  superior 
education  for  those  days — became,  I  believe, 
paymaster  of  Napoleon's  household.  The  chil- 
dren were  brought  up  together,  and  when  the 
little  ones  were  old  enough  to  toddle  about. 
Napoleon  would  make  them  the  companions  of 
his  daily  walks,  taking  one  child  by  each  hand, 
giving  them  cakes,  sweets,  etc.,  and  he  became 
very  much  attached  to  them  both.  In  the  ordi- 
nary way  he  contented  himself  with  walking  up 


ANECDOTAL  255 

and  down  the  corridors.  This  was  his  only 
exercise,  for  he  never  went  outside  Longwood 
for  fear  of  being  pointed  out  or  stared  at. 

"  Napoleon  complained  bitterly  of  the  harsh 
behaviour  of  Sir  Hudson  Lowe,  and  of  both  the 
quantity  and  quality  of  the  food  supplied,  but  his 
complaints  were  in  vain.  By  way  of  remedy,  he 
conceived  the  notion  of  breaking  off  the  gold  and 
silver  eagles  from  his  covers  and  plates,  which 
my  grandfather,  who  was  devoted  to  him,  used 
to  sell  for  him,  in  order  to  furnish  necessaries 
for  the  table.  When  this  device  was  discovered 
it  would  seem  to  have  had  some  effect,  for  bet- 
ter treatment  followed. 

"When  Napoleon  died — on  May  5,  182 1 — his 
body  was  opened  for  embalming,  and  his  heart 
taken  out  and  placed  in  a  wash-hand  basin  in  an 
adjacent  room,  with  a  lamp  on  the  table  beside 
it.  Longwood  was  infested  with  rats,  and  fear- 
ing the  result  of  an  incursion  of  these  voracious 
creatures,  my  grandfather  volunteered  to  sit  in 
the  room  all  through  the  night  with  an  old 
'  Brown  Bess '  in  his  hand  and  shoot  the  rats 
when  they  came  too  near 

"Sir  Hudson  Lowe,  on  his  return  to  England, 


256  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

lived  a  solitary  life  in  an  old-fashioned  brick 
house  in  Chelsea.  The  house  stood  in  large 
grounds,  with  tall  trees  giving  shelter  to  hun- 
dreds of  rooks.  To-day,  house  and  trees  have 
disappeared  to  give  place  to  palatial  flats.*  He 
was  in  the  habit  of  walking  alone  every  after- 
noon in  the  Park  ;  and  returning  one  day  through 
Wilton  Crescent,  he  was  met  by  a  man  who 
looked  at  him  for  a  moment,  and  then  produced 
a  heavy  riding  whip  with  which  he  lashed  Sir 
Hudson  Lowe  across  the  back  two  or  three  times, 
and  then  disappeared.  That  man  was  Las 
Casas,  Napoleon's  valet." 

*  *  *  * 

"  Read  this,"  said  Sir  Arthur  to  me. 

"  '  I  remember  poor  Byron,  Hobhouse,  Trelaw- 
ney,  and  myself  dining  with  Cardinal  Mezzocaldo 
at  Rome,'  Captain  Sumph  began,  '  and  we  had 
some  Orvieto  wine  for  dinner  which  Byron  liked 

*  The  house  stood  just  off  Cadogan  Terrace,  and  a  few  yards 
east  of  it  was  a  Roman  Catholic  chapel  built  by  the  Abbe  Voyaux  de 
Franoux,  a  French  noble  who  escaped  to  England  during  the  Reign 
of  Terror.  He  settled  there  and  devoted  his  life  to  good  works. 
One  day,  on  hearing  that  the  Comte  de  Chambord  was  going  there 
to  early  service,  his  followers  flocked  to  the  spot  in  hundreds,  and 
literally  stormed  the  building,  leaping  over  seats  and  pews  like  a  rush 


ANECDOTAL  257 

very  much.  And  I  remember  how  the  Cardinal 
regretted  that  he  was  a  single  man.  We  went 
to  Civita  Vecchia  two  days  afterwards,  where 
Byron's  yacht  was — and,  by  Jove!  the  Cardinal 
died  within  three  weeks  ;  and  Byron  was  very 
sorry,  for  he  rather  liked  him.' 

"  '  A  devilish  interesting  story,  Sumph,  indeed,' 
Wagg  said.  '  You  should  publish  some  of  these 
stories,  Captain  Sumph,  you  really  should,'  Shan- 
don  replied.'  " 

"  Each  time  that  I  am  temped  to  relate  some 
incident  in  my  life  that  to  me  is  of  interest,  the 
above  passage  from  Thackeray's  immortal 
*  Pendennis '  rises  warningly  before  me.  I  feel 
that  I  am  Captain  Sumph.  Yet  in  spite  of  such 
warnings  the  reminiscences  will  roll  out. 

"  Who  of  us  does  not  love  to  dwell  on  his  asso- 
ciation with  the  great  ones  who  have  left  us?  and 
on  the  other  hand,  surely  we  love  to  hear  of  them 
— no  matter  how  trifling  the  incident — first  hand, 
direct  from  personal  contact.  I  call  to  mind  with 
what  awe  I  listened  to  Sterndale  Bennett  saying 

into  a  theatre  on  Boxing  Night,  in  order  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  their 
beloved  Prince.  The  Comte  himself  escaped  the  scrimmage  by 
being  forcibly  pulled  in  through  a  small  door. 


258  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

familiarly  :  '  When  I  was  dining  with  Mendels- 
sohn one  day '  ;  or  to  Moscheles  saying  :  '  As 
Beethoven  and  I  were  walking  in  the  Graben,' 
etc.;  and  to  any  one,  in  fact,  who  had  spoken 
with  departed  great  statesmen,  warriors,  or 
artists.  There  was  a  fascination  in  looking  at 
and  speaking  with  such  an  one.  And  at  those 
times  I  could  appreciate  poor  Captain  Sumph 
and  should  have  loved  to  be  with  him. 

"  Here  is  a  reminiscence  worthy  of  the  gallant 
captain: 

"  The  first  time  Tennyson  came  to  dine  at  my 
house,  the  door  was  opened  to  him  by  a  parlour- 
maid who  had  been  with  us  many  years  and  was 
like  one  of  the  family.  She  was  fairly  staggered 
by  the  appearance  of  the  visitor,  who,  as  will  be 
remembered,  always  wore  a  deep,  broad-brimmed 
black  felt  hat  and  a  black  cape  or  short  cloak, 
which  made  him  look  exactly  like  a  conspirator 
in  an  Italian  or  Spanish  play.  Our  little  party 
consisted  of  Tennyson,  Millais,  Francis  Byng 
(now  Earl  of  Strafford),  myself,  my  mother  and 
another  lady  (Captain  Sumph  again!).  We  met 
to  discuss  the  proposed  work  in  collaboration 
— which  afterwards  was  published  without  Mil- 


ANECDOTAL  259 

lais'  illustrations  as  'The  Window;  or,  the  Loves 
of  the  Wrens.'  When  the  guests  had  departed, 
Kate,  the  maid,  said  to  me,  "  Was  that  really 
the  great  poet,  Master  Arthur?  [I  was  nearly 
thirty!]  Well!  he  do  wear  clothes! '  '  Of  course,' 
I  replied  with  subtle  irony,  '  all  poets  do.  Be- 
sides,' I  added,  'you  forget  that  he  is  Poet- 
Laureate.' 

"She  hadn't  forgotten  it,  for  she  had  never 
known  it.  Then  after  a  slight  pause,  she  said 
thoughtfully:  '  What  a  queer  uniform!' 

"  Now,  I  wonder  if  she  imagined  that  Tenny- 
son belonged  to  a  brigade  all  dressed  in  the 
same  way. 

"  I  long  now  to  tell  of  my  friendship  and  asso- 
ciation with  others  besides  Tennyson.  Millais, 
in  whose  studio  I  passed  hours  when  a  lad,  and 
who  in  after  years  had  much  difficulty  in  paint- 
ing my  portrait,  and  made  me  vow  I  would  never 
disclose  the  enormous  number  of  sittings  I  gave 
him  for  it;  Leighton,  who  in  his  younger  days 
was  fond  of  singing  Italian  songs  and  duets,  and 
who  with  Millais  at  my  instigation  first  invited 
musicians  to  the  Royal  Academy  banquet,  and 
who  there  first  introduced  the  toast  of  '  Music 


26o  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

and  the  Drama/  to  which  Irving  and  myself 
responded;  of  Sir  A.  Cockburn  and  his  love  of 
music — how  we  frequently  went  to  concerts  to- 
gether, and  upon  one  occasion  missed  a  Monday 
Popular  Concert  altogether  in  consequence  of 
sitting  until  ten  o'clock  discussing  some  very  fine 
old  port  and  the  Tichborne  case  at  the  same 
time.  At  one  time  this  cause  celebre  absorbed  his 
thoughts  and  conversation  entirely;  and  I  re- 
member at  a  dinner  at  his  house,  when  some 
distinguished  foreigners  were  present,  he  gave  a 
complete  resume  of  the  case  in  French  (which  he 
spoke  perfectly — his  mother  was  French,  I  be- 
lieve), lasting  a  couple  of  hours.  Then  Brown- 
ing— the  very  antithesis  of  Tennyson  in  every 
respect;  Fred  Clay,  one  of  the  most  gifted  and 
brilliant  of  men,  and  like  a  brother  to  me;  'Sim' 
Egerton  (the  late  Earl  of  Wilton),  a  born  musical 
conductor,  who  struggled  manfully  against  the 
disadvantages  of  birth,  wealth,  and  position;  and 
Sir  Frederic  Ousely,  whose  musical  genius  met 
with  the  same  obstacles — both  these  men  would 
have  made  a  mark  in  the  musical  world  if  they 
had  had  to  work  for  their  living.  Apropos  of 
Ousely  a  humorous  episode  comes  to  my  recol- 


ANECDOTAL  261 

lection.  He  was  of  a  very  gentle,  shy  nature, 
and  rather  shunned  mixing  in  society,  but  drawn 
on  the  subject  of  music  he  became  vivacious  and 
talkative.  One  Sunday  evening  he  and  I  were 
invited  by  '  Sim  '  Egerton  to  dine  at  mess  with 
the  Life  Guards:  his  natural  reserve  and  hesita- 
tion with  regard  to  a  Sunday  dinner  were  soon 
overcome  by  assurance  that  it  would  be  very 
quiet  and  staid,  and  so  we  went.  Shy  at  first,  some 
one  talked  to  him  about  music,  when  he  bright- 
ened up  and  began  to  tell  various  incidents  in 
his  musical  career.  He  overlooked  the  fact  that 
with  one  or  two  exceptions  none  present  under- 
stood his  reference  to  technical  details,  but  he 
crowned  his  recital  by  describing  the  humorous 
points  in  an  exercise  for  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Music  which  had  come  before  him  as  Professor 
of  Music  at  Oxford.  The  officers  listened  re- 
spectfully, hardly  comprehending  a  word,  and  he 
finished  up  by  exclaiming:  'And  you'll  scarcely 
believe  me,  Colonel  So-and-So,  when  I  tell  you 
that  the  whole  movement  was  in  the  hypomyxo- 
lydian  mode!'  'God  bless  my  soul,  you  don't 
say  so!'  replied  the  Colonel,  with  well-feigned 
astonishment.    'It  is  a  fact,'  replied  Ousely." 


CHAPTER   XIV 

"ABOUT    MUSIC" 

An  Address  Delivered  in  the  Town  Hall,  Birmingham,  on  Octo- 
ber 19,  1888,  by  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan. 

IT  has  come  to  my  good  fortune  to  have  to 
address  you  as  President  of  the  Birming- 
ham and  Midland  Institute,  and  I  naturally 
choose  the  subject  of  Music.  I  can  choose  no 
other.  Music  has  been  my  incessant  occupa- 
tion since  I  was  eight  years  old.  All  my  ener- 
gies, all  my  affections,  have  been  bestowed  upon 
it,  and  it  has  for  long  been  to  me  a  second  nature. 
The  interests  and  triumphs  of  my  art  are  dearer 
to  me  than  any  other  interests  and  triumphs  can 
be.  Music  is  to  me  a  mistress  in  every  sense  of 
the  word  ;  a  mistress  whose  commands  I  obey, 
whose  smiles  I  love,  whose  wrongs  move  me  as 
no  others  do.  And  therefore  it  will  not  be  diffi- 
cult for  you  to  understand  the  gratification  with 
which  I  address  you  in  this  famous  city,  a  city 
which  first  set  England  the  example  of  combin- 

262 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  263 

ing  the  triumphs  of  practical  science  with  those 
of  art  by  founding  here,  in  the  middle  of  your 
workshops  and  factories,  the  world-renowned 
Birmingham  Festival,  and  afterwards  crowning 
the  edifices  of  this  great  town  by  the  majestic 
portico  of  that  temple  in  which  so  many  master- 
pieces of  music  have  been  first  heard  by  thou- 
sands of  enthusiastic  worshippers. 

But  I  confess  that  it  is  with  very  considerable 
diffidence  that  I  speak  to  you  on  the  subject  of 
music,  and  I  can  at  once  relieve  you  of  all  anxiety 
by  stating  that  my  address  will  be  a  very  short 
one,  because  all  my  life  I  have  been  making 
music  and  not  talking  about  it.  It  is  so  easy,  in 
an  address  on  music,  either  to  sink  into  dull 
platitudes,  or  to  indulge  in  wearisome  and,  to 
many  in  a  general  audience,  incomprehensible 
technicalities.  I  shall,  however,  endeavour  to 
avoid  both  of  these  errors,  and  in  the  few 
remarks  I  am  addressing  to  you  shall  give  utter- 
ance to  a  few  thoughts  of  my  own  on  the  subject, 
which  may,  I  trust,  interest  you  as  they  have 
interested  me. 

Among  the  many  advances  of  our  country  in 
the   last    half-century,     surely  none    has    been 


264  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

greater  than  that  of  music.  Publications  and  per- 
formances are  now  so  extraordinarily  multiplied 
that  the  masterpieces — not  only  of  the  old  com- 
posers, but  of  the  most  modern  writers — are 
brought  within  the  means  of  every  one,  more  so, 
probably,  than  in  any  other  country ;  and  Eng- 
land has  thus,  so  far,  the  chance  of  again  assum- 
ing the  position  that  she  held  many  hundred 
years  ago  of  being  at  the  head  of  Europe  as  a 
musical  country.  She  was  once  (as  I  believe  the 
most  Teutonic  of  German  historians  now  allow) 
a  long  way  in  advance  of  other  nations — yet  how 
little  is  this  known  or  acknowledged  by  ourselves  ! 
So  far  back  as  the  year  1230  a  piece  of  music 
composed  by  a  monk  of  Reading  (John  of  Forn- 
sete  was  his  honoured  name,  and  the  MS.  of  his 
work  is  at  the  British  Museum)  was  far,  far  in 
advance,  both  in  tunefulness  and  expression,  of 
anything  else  produced  at  that  time.  I  allude  to 
the  celebrated  glee,  in  six  vocal  parts,  *'  Sumer  is 
a-cumin  in."  And  observe  that  that  pre-emi- 
nence implies  many  years  (I  might  say  centuries) 
of  previous  study  and  progress  on  the  part  of 
our  countrymen.  But  we  need  not  trust  to  impli- 
cation   only;   records   exist  to   prove  how  dili- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  265 

gently  and  enthusiastically  music  was  pursued 
in  England  from  the  reign  of  King  Alfred  to 
the  time  of  the  Reformation.  Here  are  a  few 
facts : — 

In  550  A.  D.  there  was  a  great  gathering  and 
competition  of  harpists  at  Conway — an  early 
Eisteddfod. 

In  866  King  Alfred  instituted  a  professorship 
of  music  at  Oxford,  and  there  must  have  been 
concerted  music  in  those  Anglo-Saxon  times,  for 
in  the  British  Museum  is  an  old  picture  of  a  con- 
cert consisting  of  a  six-stringed  harp,  a  four- 
stringed  fiddle,  a  trumpet,  and  a  crooked  horn. 
Curiously  enough,  this  is,  with  the  exception  of 
the  horn,  exactly  the  same  combination  of  instru- 
ments that  we  see  nearly  every  Saturday  night 
playing  outside  a  London  public-house!  I  have 
not  noticed  whether  the  background  of  the  pic- 
ture I  allude  to  represents  the  corresponding 
locality  of  that  period. 

Even  then  music  had  begun  to  exercise  an 
influence  on  trade;  the  metal  industry  and  join- 
ery must  have  already  benefited  by  it,  for  in  the 
tenth  century  the  monk  Wulston  gives  a  long 
description  of  a  grand  organ  in  Winchester  Ca- 


266  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

thedral,  and  St.  Dunstan,  famous  for  his  skill  in 
metal  work,  at  the  same  date  fabricated  an  organ 
in  Malmesbury  Abbey,  the  pipes  of  which  were 
of  brass. 

Long  before  the  Conquest,  three-part  harmony 
was  practised,  and  is  spoken  of  by  the  chroniclers 
as  the  "custom  of  the  country."  Thomas  ^ 
Becket,  on  his  visit  to  France  to  negotiate  the 
marriage  of  Henry  II.,  took  with  him  250  boys, 
who  sang  a  harmony  of  three  parts,  which 
is  expressly  recorded  to  have  been  **  in  the 
English  manner,  and  till  then  unheard  of  in 
France." 

It  is  a  satisfaction  to  know,  also,  that  in  those 
days  musicians  were  well  paid;  for  at  the  wedding 
of  Edward  I.'s  daughter  every  King's  minstrel 
received  forty  shillings — equal,  at  least,  to  twenty 
pounds  in  these  days.  Chaucer,  in  his  "  Prin- 
cesses' Tale,"  mentions  approvingly  that  young 
children  were  taught  to  sing  as  much  as  they 
were  taught  to  read.  But  he  somewhat  weakens 
the  value  of  his  judgment,  in  my  eyes,  by  express- 
ing elsewhere  the  opinion  that  every  country 
squire  should  be  taught  to  play  the  flute. 

In   the  reign    of    Edward    II.    harmony  had 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  267 

advanced.    At  the  "  Tournament  of  Tottenham" 
we  read  that — 

"  In  all  the  corners  of  the  house 
Was  melody  delicious 
Of  six-men  songs." 

The  constitution  of  military  bands  in  England 
was  also  of  a  very  early  date.  Henry  VI.,  when 
he  went  to  war  with  France,  took  over  with  him 
a  band  consisting  of  ten  clarion  players  and 
other  instrumentalists,  who  played  at  head- 
quarters morning  and  evening.  This  is  the  first 
military  band  we  have  a  record  of.  Queen 
Elizabeth  improved  upon  it  so  far  as  to  have  a 
band  which  played  during  her  dinner,  of  twelve 
trumpets,  two  kettledrums,  pipes,  cornets,  and 
side  drums,  and  I  am  not  astonished  when  I  read 
that  "this  musicke  did  make  the  hall  ring  for 
half-an-hour." 

In  her  reign  the  priest  must  have  been  (as  he 
often  is  now)  the  musician  of  the  parish,  and  a 
cheery  good  fellow;  for  in  Vernon's  "  Hunting  of 
Purgatory  and  Death,"  1561,  the  author  says: — 
"  I  knewe  a  priest  whiche,  when  any  of  his 
parishioners  should  be  maryed,  would  take  his 
backe-pype  and  go   fetch  them  to  the  Church, 


268  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

playinge  sweetlie  afore  them;  and  then  he  would 
lay  his  instrument  handsomely  upon  the  aultar 
tyll  he  had  maryed  them  and  sayd  mass.  Which 
thyng  being  done,  he  would  gentillye  bringe 
them  home  again  with  his  backe-pype." 

I  could  produce  an  immense  mass  of  evidence 
as  to  the  forward  condition  of  music  in  England 
up  to  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century,  but 
I  will  not  weary  you  with  details — details  which 
you  can  learn  for  yourselves  in  your  excellent 
Free  Library,  if  you  are  inclined  to  go  more 
deeply  into  the  matter.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  we 
have  clear  proof  of  the  existence  of  a  highly 
educated  school  of  theoretical  musicians  who 
preserved  the  plain-song  of  the  Church  in  its  in- 
tegrity, and  made  it  the  basis  of  harmonic  treat- 
ment; who  wrote  out  their  harmony  in  score,  and 
from  one  of  whom  emanated  the  earliest  remain- 
ing composition  of  freedom  and  beauty,  the  be- 
fore-mentioned glee,  "  Sumer  is  a-cumin  in." 
And  this  was  followed  up  by  a  succession  of  origi- 
nal works  by  such  writers  as  John  Dunstable,  who, 
though  now  little  known  in  England,  had  in  his 
own  day  a  great  reputation  abroad. 

Thu  Universities   of  Cambridge    and  Oxford 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  269 

acknowledged  the  importance  of  music  by  mak- 
ing it  a  faculty,  and  granting  doctors'  degrees, 
analogous  to  those  granted  in  Divinity,  Law, 
and  Medicine,  at  a  very  early  date.  Joan  of  Arc 
and  her  tragical  end  seem  to  us  a  long,  long  way 
back  in  our  history,  and  yet  only  thirty  years 
after  her  death  was  the  first  musical  degree  con- 
ferred at  Cambridge;  and  even  now  no  other 
universities  in  Europe  but  English  ones  confer 
musical  degrees. 

There  are  clear  indications  that  up  to  the  time 
of  the  Reformation  music  was  in  continual  pro- 
gress. But,  unfortunately,  the  Wars  of  the  Roses 
and  the  ruthless  destruction  which  accompanied 
the  suppression  of  the  monasteries  (the  only 
homes  of  art  of  all  kinds  in  those  rough  savage 
days)  have  obliterated  all  but  the  rarest  indica- 
tions. But  it  is  certain,  not  only  from  the  trea- 
tises and  compositions  of  the  fourteenth  and  fif- 
teenth centuries  that  have  survived,  but  from 
the  splendour  of  the  English  School  when  we 
again  encounter  it  about  1520,  that  in  the  inter- 
val our  music  had  been  growing  and  flourishing, 
as  everything  in  England  grows  and  flourishes 
when  it  really  seizes  hold  of  the  English  people. 


270  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

Palestrina  (from  1550  to  1600)  no  doubt  wrote 
more  nobly  than  any  of  his  contemporaries, 
including  our  own  Tallis  and  Byrd;  but  it  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  the  English  predecessors  of 
Tallis  and  Byrd — Edwards,  Redford,  Shepperd, 
Tye,  White,  Johnson,  and  Marbecke,  who  date 
from  1500  to  1550,  were  much  in  advance  of  any 
of  the  predecessors  of  Palestrina  on  the  Conti- 
nent. For  they  were  their  equals  in  science,  and 
they  far  surpassed  them  in  the  tunefulness  and 
what  I  may  call  the  common  sense  of  their  music. 
Their  compositions  display  a  "  sweet  reasonable- 
ness," a  human  feeling,  a  suitability  to  the  words, 
and  a  determination  to  be  something  more  than 
a  mere  scientific  and  mechanical  puzzle,  which 
few,  if  any,  of  the  Continental  composers  before 
1550  can  be  said  to  exhibit.  I  have  only  to 
mention  the  familiar  title  of  the  charming  and 
favourite  madrigal,  *'  In  going  to  my  lonely  bed" 
(by  Edwards,  1523- 1566)  to  convince  many  here 
present  of  the  truth  of  what  I  am  saying.  Such 
was  our  position  in  the  first  half  of  the  sixteenth 
century;  and  the  half-century  following  is  the 
splendid  time  of  English  music,  in  which  the 
illustrious   names  of    Morley,  Weekes,  Wilbye, 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  271 

Ford,  Dowland,  and  Orlando  Gibbons  shine  like 
stars.  These  names  may  be  unknown  to  some 
of  you,  but  the  men  existed,  and  their  works  live; 
live  not  alone  by  reason  of  their  science,  their 
pure  part-writing  and  rich  harmonies,  but  by  the 
stream  of  beautiful  melody  which  flows  through 
all  their  works — melody  which  is  ear-haunting 
even  to  our  modern  and  jaded  natures,  and 
which  had  no  parallel  elsewhere.  Those  of  you 
who  have  heard  such  works  as  the  "  Silver  Swan," 
by  Gibbons,  and  "  Since  first  I  saw  your  face,"  by 
Ford,  will,  I  am  sure,  endorse  my  opinion. 

I  will  not  go  into  the  causes  which,  for  nearly 
200  years,  made  us  lose  that  high  position,  and 
threw  us  into  the  hands  of  the  illustrious  foreign- 
ers, Handel,  Haydn,  Spohr,  Mendelssohn  (so  long 
the  favourite  composers  of  the  English),  and  of 
the  Italian  Opera,  which  exclusively  occupied 
the  attention  of  the  fashionable  classes,  and,  like 
a  great  car  of  Juggernaut,  overrode  and  crushed 
all  efforts  made  on  behalf  of  native  music.  My 
belief  is  that  this  was  largely  due  to  the  enthusi- 
asm with  which  commerce  was  pursued,  and  to 
the  extraordinary  way  in  which  religious  and 
political  struggles,  and,  later  still,  practical  sci- 


272  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

ence,  have  absorbed  our  energies.  We  were  con- 
tent to  bziy  our  music,  while  we  were  making 
churches,  steam-engines,  railways,  cotton-mills, 
constitutions,  anti-Corn-Law  Leagues,  and  Cau- 
cuses. Now,  however,  as  I  have  already  said, 
the  condition  of  things  is  changing — it  has 
changed.  And  yet  I  cannot  but  feel  that  we  are 
only  at  the  entry  of  the  Promised  Land.  Habits 
of  mind  and  modes  of  action  are  still  to  be  found 
which  show  that  we  have  much  to  do  before  we 
become  the  musical  people  that  we  were  in  the 
remoter  ages  of  our  history.  We  do,  indeed, 
love  music,  but  it  is  with  an  inferior  affection 
to  that  which  we  lavish  on  other  objects  of  life. 
We  have  not  yet  ceased  to  talk  whilst  music  is 
being  performed  ;  we  still  come  in  late  to  a  con- 
cert, and  whilst  some  noble  and  pathetic  work  is 
enchaining  the  attention  of  every  one,  we-  too 
often  insist  upon  disturbing  twenty  or  thirty  peo- 
ple and  destroying  their  enjoyment  because  we 
have  bought  seats  Nos.  23,  24,  and  25,  and  mean 
to  have  our  money's  worth.  And  if  we  come 
late,  depend  upon  it  we  always  go  out  before  the 
concert  is  finished,  to  show  how  thoroughly  inde- 
pendent we  are.     In  this  we   are   like  Charles 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  273 

Lamb,  who,  when  a  clerk  in  the  East  India 
Office,  was  reproached  by  his  chief,  "  Mr.  Lamb, 
you  come  so  late  in  the  mornings."  "Yes  sir," 
was  the  reply,  "  but  I  go  away  so  early  in  the 
afternoons." 

I  am  not  apt  to  praise  the  foreigner  at  the 
expense  of  Englishmen,  but  we  have  a  lesson  to 
learn  from  both  Germans  and  Frenchmen  in  this 
respect.  I  fear  we  must  admit  that  even  at  pres- 
ent, in  the  mind  of  a  true  Briton,  business, 
society,  politics,  and  sport,  all  come  before  art. 
Art  is  very  well ;  we  have  no  objection  to  pay  for 
it,  and  to  pay  well.  But  we  can  only  enjoy  it  if  it 
interferes  with  none  of  these  pet  pleasures ;  and  in 
consequence  it  has  often  to  suffer. 

I  will  name  an  amusing  little  instance  of  similar 
indifference  in  another  art  which  came  to  my 
notice  while  preparing  these  remarks.  A  very 
eminent  commercial  firm  gave  my  friend,  Sir 
John  Millais,  a  large  sum  for  a  beautiful  picture, 
with  the  full-size  facsimile  of  which  we  are  fami- 
liar— the  lad  blowing  soap-bubbles.  The  bub- 
ble is  in  the  air  over  the  boy's  head,  and  the 
picture  tells  its  tale  to  every  one.  But  a  second 
facsimile  has  been  posted,  and  in  order  that  the 


274  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

name  of  the  firm  may  be  made  more  prominent, 
the  bubble  has  been  covered  over  and  the  whole 
point  of  the  painting  is  lost. 

But  besides  the  indifference  I  speak  of,  there 
is  no  doubt  that  music  has  had  to  suffer  much 
from  the  lofty  contempt  with  which  she  and  her 
votaries  have  been  treated  by  those  who  pro- 
fessed to  have  a  claim  to  distinction  in  other 
walks.  True,  since  the  days  of  that  piggish 
nobleman,  Lord  Chesterfield,  things  have  greatly 
changed.  Eton,  Harrow,  Rugby — all  the  great 
schools — have  now  their  masters  for  music  on  the 
same  footing  as  other  instructors.  Go  into  the 
officers'  quarters  in  barracks,  and  you  find  piano- 
fortes, violins,  and  violoncellos  ;  and  lying  about 
there  will  be  good  music.  Amateur  societies 
flourish,  which  bring  rich  and  poor  together. 
H.R.H.,  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  told  me  that 
he  had  a  complete  string  quartette  amongst  the 
officers  on  board  his  ship — all  these  things  point 
to  a  great  reaction  in  the  feelings  of  the  profes- 
sional classes  towards  music. 

But  much  of  the  old  leaven  remains,  and  one 
of  its  most  objectionable  developments  is  a  curi- 
ous affectation  of  ignorance  on  the  part  of  many 


HIS  LIFE  STORY  275 

men  of  position  in  the  political  and  scientific 
world — as  if  music  were  too  trivial  a  matter  for 
their  lofty  intellects  to  take  notice  of.  At  any 
great  meeting  of  the  subject  of  music,  arch- 
bishops, judges,  politicians,  financiers — each  one 
who  rises  to  speak  will  deprecate  any  knowledge 
of  music  with  a  snug  satisfaction,  like  a  man 
disowning  poor  relations. 

I  am  not  here  to  explain  why  music  should  be 
cultivated,  nor  to  apologise  to  superior-minded 
persons  for  its  existence,  nor  to  speak  humbly 
and  with  bated  breath  of  its  merits  ;  but  I  claim 
for  it  boldly  and  proudly  its  place  amongst  the 
great  things  and  the  great  influences  in  the 
world  ;  and  I  can  but  express  pity  for  those  who 
are  ignorant  and  stupid  enough  to  deny  its 
importance  in  the  world  and  history,  and  to  look 
upon  it  as  a  mere  family  pastime,  fit  only  for 
women  and  children. 

Darwin,  in  his  "  Descent  of  Man,"  says: — 
**  Neither  the  enjoyment  nor  the  capacity  of 
producing  musical  notes  are  faculties  of  the 
least  direct  use  to  man  in  reference  to  his  ordi- 
nary habits  of  life."  Physiologically  he  is  prob- 
ably correct,  but  as  soon  as  merely  rudimentary 


276  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

actions  are  left,  as  soon  as  existence  becomes 
life,  his  statement  is  completely  false.  Indeed, 
music  is,  as  the  same  philosopher  elsewhere 
says,  bound  up  in  daily  life,  and  a  necessity  of 
existence. 

Of  its  usefulness  in  daily  life  there  can  be  no 
question.  What  would  religious  services  be 
without  organs  and  singing?  What  would 
armies  be  without  bands?  If  music  were  a  mere 
luxury,  would  people  spend  so  much  time  and 
money  on  it?  It  is  not  to  obtain  mere  ear-enjoy- 
ment— it  is  because  it  is  a  necessity  to  satisfy  cer- 
tain requirements  of  the  mind.  It  enters  into 
the  chemistry  of  the  mind  as  salt  does  into  the 
chemistry  of  the  body.  Here  and  there  you 
meet  with  a  person  who  says,  "  I  never  eat  salt 
— I  do  not  require  it."  Well,  you  are  sorry  for 
him  ;  there  is  evidently  something  wrong  in  his 
physical  constitution.  So  when  any  one  assumes 
a  tone  of  lofty  superiority,  and  boasts  that  he 
knows  nothing  about  music,  and  pretends  not  to 
be  able  to  distinguish  one  tune  from  another, 
you  may  either  accept  his  statement  with  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  reserve,  or  conclude  that 
there  is   something  wrong  in   his  physical    or 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  277 

mental  faculties,  and  recommend  him  to  consult 
an  artist. 

Now  bear  with  me  a  few  moments  while  I 
briefly  consider  three  points  about  music — its 
usefulness,  its  necessity  for  the  mind,  and  its  over- 
powering influence  in  the  world.  It  is  singular 
from  how  very  early  a  date  music  took  a  great 
position.  In  the  account  of  the  origin  of  man- 
kind as  given  us  in  the  book  of  Genesis,  we  find 
society  divided  into  three  great  divisions,  (i) 
Agriculturists,  "  those  that  dwell  in  tents  and 
have  cattle";  (2)  Manufacturers,  "artificers  in 
brass  and  iron  ";  (3)  Musicians,  "  such  as  handle 
the  harp  and  pipe,"  i.e.,  strings  and  wind.  Music 
is  put  on  a  level  with  such  essential  pursuits  as 
agriculture  and  manufactures.  And  this  equal 
share  in  the  economy  of  the  world  music  has 
maintained  ;  but  belonging,  as  it  does,  to  the 
inmost  part  of  man's  nature,  its  presence  is  often 
overlooked,  and  we  are  as  unconscious  of  it  as 
we  are  of  the  air  we  breathe,  the  speech  we  utter, 
the  natural  motion  of  our  muscles,  or  the  beat- 
ing of  our  hearts.  It  is  co-extensive  with  human 
life.  From  the  soft  lullaby  of  the  mother  that 
soothes  our  cradle-life  to  the  dirge  that  is  sung 


278  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

over  the  grave,  music  enters  into  our  existence. 
It  marks  periods  and  epochs  of  our  life,  stim- 
ulates our  exertions,  strengthens  our  faith,  speaks 
both  words  of  peace  and  of  war,  and  exercises 
over  us  a  charm  and  indefinite  power  which 
we  can  all  feel,  though  we  cannot  explain.  I 
repeat,  it  is  a  necessity  to  the  mind,  as  salt  is  to 
the  body. 

And  now,  to  bring  the  question  of  its  2^^^  forcibly 
forward  to  our  British  understandings,  what 
would  commerce  be  without  the  music  trades, 
without  that  multitude  of  industries,  those  mil- 
lions of  workers  who  are  necessary  for  the 
production  of  organs,  pianofortes,  and  every 
kind  of  wind,  string  and  percussion  instruments; 
for  the  engraving,  type-setting,  and  printing 
of  music  ;  for  the  manufacture  of  the  millions 
of  reams  of  paper  used  in  music-printing  and 
copying  ? 

I  will  take  one  item,  comparatively  a  small 
one,  but  one  which  for  Birmingham  has  a  pecu- 
liar interest.  Have  you  ever  thought  of  the 
amount  of  steel  wire  used  in  the  manufacture  of 
pianofortes?  It  is  impossible  to  get  the  actual 
statistics  of  the  pianoforte  trade  of  the  world, 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  279 

but  I  have  been  to  some  pains  to  inquire,  and 
have  formed  a  fairly  approximate  estimate. 
Taking  the  products  of  the  principal  manufactur- 
ing countries,  England,  France,  Germany,  Amer- 
ica, and  smaller  states,  I  find  that  the  total  of 
pianofortes  manufactured  every  year  is  about 
175,000,  and  that  the  average  amount  of  wire 
used  in  each  pianoforte  is  about  570  feet;  your 
own  quick  calculation  will  tell  you  that  this  rep- 
resents in  length  18,892  miles  of  steel  wire  !  If  it 
were  in  one  continuous  piece  it  would  reach  from 
here  to  Japan  and  back  again,  and  then  you  would 
have  enough  left  over  to  run  up  with  to  Scotland 
and  back. 

When  we  come  to  the  question  of  the  influence 
of  music,  we  arrive  at  its  most  important  function 
— the  era  of  its  greatest  power.  Who  shall  mea- 
sure the  boundless  influence  of  music  on  human 
feeling?  Who  shall  gainsay  the  mighty  power  it 
exercises  over  human  passions  ?  or  deny  the 
dynamical  force  which  it  has  exerted  in  history? 
In  the  ancient  world  it  is  constantly  found  associ- 
ated with  eventful  episodes.  The  earliest  records 
of  the  Bible  contain  more  than  one  such  combi- 
nation.   To  the  incident  in  the  life  of  Lamech, 


28o  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

the  antediluvian  hero — an  incident  embodied  in 
what  are  perhaps  the  earliest  lines  of  poetry  in 
the  world — I  shall  only  refer  ;  but  I  would  remind 
you  that  in  the  East  verse  and  music  are  more 
constantly  associated  than  they  are  with  us,  and 
that  Lamech's  poetry  probably  had  its  own 
melody.  Jubal,  the  inventor  of  string  and  wind 
instruments,  and  the  father  of  all  the  musicians 
who  have  succeeded  him,  has  (as  I  have  already 
pointed  out)  his  existence  announced  in  exactly 
the  same  terms  as  the  discoverers  of  agriculture 
and  of  engineering.  The  greatest  of  the  great 
wells  which  supplied  the  Israelites  during  their 
wandering  in  the  wilderness  is  expressly  stated 
to  have  been  dug  to  the  sound  of  a  solemn 
national  music,  of  the  extent  of  which  we  can 
form  little  idea  from  the  concise  terms  of  the 
ancient  narrative;  but  from  the  mention  of  the 
fact  that,  at  the  special  command  of  Jehovah, 
the  great  Lawgiver  himself,  the  leaders  of  the 
people  and  the  whole  congregation  took  part  in 
the  singing,  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  it  was 
a  most  imposing  and  impressive  musical  cere- 
monial. We  have  the  words,  the  very  words 
themselves: — 


HIS  LIFE  STORY  2S1 

*'  Spring  up,  O  well,  sing  ye  unto  it ; 
The  well  which  the  princes  digged, 
Which  the  nobles  of  the  people  delved 
With  the  sceptre  and  their  staves. " 

Would  that  the  music  had  also  been  preserved  ! 

In  Greece  we  find  that  the  first  definite  political 
revolution  in  Athens — the  murder  of  Hipparchus 
the  tyrant,  and  the  establishment  of  free  govern- 
ment, as  early  as  514  b.  c. — was  consecrated  and 
probably  accompanied  by  a  song  which  is  still 
preserved,  the  song  of  Harmodius  and  Aristo- 
geiton.  This  song  was  for  generations  a  rallying 
cry  to  the  Greek  Jacobins. 

In  more  modern  times  music  fully  maintained 
its  political  influence.  The  Reformation  in  Ger- 
many was  powerfully  advanced  by  Luther's  famous 
hymn,  "Ein  feste  Burg,"  and  by  his  other  chorales, 
which  are  well  known  to  have  precipitated  the 
conversion  of  whole  towns  to  the  reformed  faith, 
and  which  during  the  late  Franco-German  war 
were  lively  symbols  of  heroic  rejoicing,  and  watch- 
words of  the  national  faith.  During  the  same  war 
the  national  song  of  the  "  Wacht  am  Rhein"  had 
a  popularity  and  an  influence  which  it  is  difficult 
for  us  to  understand,  seeing  how  weak  the  tune 
is,  but  which  is  perpetuated    in  the  immense 


282  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

national  monument  near  Bingen  on  the  Rhine, 
erected  in  the  year  1883.  I  need  hardly  do  more 
than  refer  to  the  French  warlike  songs  of  "  Mal- 
brouk,"  the  " Ca  ira,"  and  the  "Marseillaise," 
which  played  so  large  a  part  in  the  French  Revo- 
lution of  1790,  or  to  "  Dunois  the  young  and 
brave,"  and  the  "Chant  du  Depart,"  which 
fanned  the  flames  on  both  sides  in  the  later 
revolutions. 

Nor  have  we  Britons  been  without  our  musical 
influences.  The  enormous  power  exercised  by 
the  Welsh  bards  of  old  caused  their  extirpation. 
Readers  of  Carlyle's  "  History  of  Cromwell"  will 
recollect  his  account  of  the  Battle  of  Dunbar,  and 
the  emotion  which  forced  that  silent  and  unde- 
monstrative man  into  urging  his  soldiers  forward 
by  shouting  and  making  them  shout  the  117th 
Psalm  to  the  version  still  used  in  the  Church  of 
Scotland,  and  to  a  still  existing  tune.  On  the 
other  side  "  The  King  shall  enjoy  his  own  again" 
and  "  Bonnie  Prince  Charlie"  were  of  great 
political  importance  in  inspiring  and  encouraging 
the  Royalist  party.  And  need  I,  in  an  assem- 
blage of  Britons,  do  more  than  allude  to  the 
tune  of  mighty  force  which  binds  us  all  together 


HIS   LIFE  STORY  283 

over  the  whole  wide  world,  "  God  Save  the 
Queen  ! " 

Dibdin's  songs,  simple  and  melodious,  with- 
out doubt,  have  taught  our  sailors  lessons  of 
patriotism  and  self-denial,  and  "  Auld  Lang 
Syne"  has  brought  about  kindness,  goodwill,  and 
the  extinction  of  many  a  long  estrangement  be- 
tween friends. 

Well,  this  is  all  sentiment,  many  may  be  dis- 
posed to  say.  Yes,  but  he  who  refuses  to  accept 
the  force  of  sentiment  on  human  nature  is  a  blind 
fool.  Many  a  statesman  has  found,  and  will  still 
find  this  to  his  cost. 

That  the  force  of  sentiment  has  been  recog- 
nised we  know  from  the  fact  that  certain  music 
has  been  prohibited  by  reason  of  its  influence. 
In  Poland,  no  man,  woman,  nor  child  was  allowed 
by  the  Russians  to  sing  any  of  their  own  national 
songs.  They  raised  feelings  dangerous  to  the 
conquerors.  Certain  tunes  are  even  now  for- 
bidden to  be  played  by  the  bands  of  the  Highland 
regiments  when  they  are  quartered  in  foreign 
parts  far  from  home.  The  effect  on  many  of  the 
men  is  actually  physical;  they  fall  ill  of  the  in- 
tense longing  for  home  which  the  music  excites. 


284  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

And  the  same  thing  happens  to  the  Swiss  peasant 
when  he  is  removed  from  his  mountains  and 
valleys;  the  loved  strains  of  the  "  Ranz  des 
Vaches  "  produce  positive  suffering — an  actual 
home-sickness. 

I  have  myself  witnessed  the  extraordinary  effect 
of  their  rhythmical  music  on  the  Arabs  in  Egypt, 
more  especially  at  the  great  ceremony  of  the  de- 
parture of  the  Sacred  Carpet  for  Mecca.  In  one 
tent  there  were  nearly  a  hundred  dervishes  sway- 
ing their  bodies  in  all  kinds  of  movements  and 
contortions,  and  singing  the  same  monotonous 
measure  over  and  over  again,  until  they  got 
maddened,  and  fell  down,  some  senseless,  some  in 
furious  fits  when  they  were  really  dangerous. 

And  is  not  our  own  British  soldier  moved  at 
the  tunes  of  "  The  British  Grenadier"  and  "  I'm 
ninety-five,"  which  thrill  his  whole  being  and 
make  him  feel  that  he  is  still  equal  to  five 
foreigners! 

Now,  if  this  influence  is  so  great,  ought  it  not 
to  be  recognised  and  controlled  by  proper  educa- 
tion?— education,  not  for  performance — but  for 
appreciation  and  understanding;.  The  School 
Board  is  doing  something,  but  it  could  do  a  great 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  285 

deal  more.  ;i^i6o,ooo  a  year  is  apportioned  by- 
Parliament  to  music,  but  it  is  not  spent  directly 
on  teaching — it  is  brought  in  as  an  allowance  for 
attendance,  with  what  result  I  do  not  quite  know. 
I  ought  to  have  referred  to  my  friend,  Sir  John 
Stainer,  who  is  the  able  Government  Inspector  of 
Schools.  But  great  things  might  be  done  with 
so  splendid  a  sum  devoted  to  instruction. 

The  love  of  music  by  children  is  remarkable — 
see  what  pleasure  they  derive  from  their  school 
songs  and  hymns.  And  their  love  of  music  does 
not  cease  with  their  school-days;  the  girls  carry 
it  with  them  into  the  factories,  and  the  lads  be- 
come a  principal  element  in  the  numerous  brass 
bands,  which  have  lately  so  much  increased  in  the 
midland  and  northern  counties.  There  is  a  sort 
of  continuity  in  the  musical  life  of  our  country 
which  should  be  fostered  and  encouraged.  The 
early  home,  the  village  school,  the  church  choir, 
the  choral  society,  or  the  brass  band,  and,  in 
special  cases,  systematic  study  at  one  of  our  great 
music  schools.  The  municipalities  ought  to  take 
up  this  work  and  systematise  it  by  the  establish- 
ment of  some  kind  of  secondary  schools.  Ireland 
possesses  a  special  Act  sanctioning  the  teaching 


286  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

of  music  in  municipal  schools  with  aid  from  the 
rates  in  support;  but  we  are  not  yet  so  fortunate 
in  England.  Our  legislation  not  only  does  not 
encourage  music,  but  it  exhibits  a  curiously 
Philistine  attitude  towards  it;  I  speak  of  the 
classing  of  music  and  drinking  licences  together, 
under  the  same  authoritie.  I  suppose  there  is 
some  subtle  reason  for  it,  but  I  fail  to  understand 
why  it  is  that  in  the  midst  of  all  that  is  low  and 
degrading,  the  one  humanising  element  which 
might  lift  poor  besotted  creatures,  if  only  for  a 
few  moments,  out  of  the  depth  of  their  wretched 
and  sordid  condition,  should  require  the  special 
sanction  of  a  board  of  magistrates.  They  may 
drink  as  much  as  they  like,  but  let  any  one  of 
them  sing  a  song,  or  play  a  tune  on  the  cornet  or 
violin,  and  down  comes  the  law  upon  them. 

I  wonder  if  this  anomaly  arises  from  the  lofty 
contempt  in  which  so  many  of  our  so-called  poli- 
ticians have  held  music  in  their  unsalted  minds. 
With  them  it  was  an  occupation  for  the  "lower 
classes,"  the  fit  companion  to  drinking  or  tight- 
rope dancing.  Of  course  it  is  the  place  that  is 
licensed — not  the  art ; — that  I  know.  But  neither 
a  picture  gallery  nor  a  bookseller's  shop  requires 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  287 

a  licence ;  and  yet  a  great  deal  more  harm  can  be 
done  to  public  morals  by  books  and  pictures  than 
by  music. 

And  herein  lies  one  of  the  divine  attributes  of 
music,  in  that  it  is  absolutely  free  from  the  power 
of  suggesting  anything  immoral.  Its  countless 
moods  and  richly  varied  forms  suit  it  to  every 
organisation,  and  it  can  convey  every  meaning 
except  one — an  impure  one.  Music  can  suggest 
no  improper  thought,  and  herein  maybe  claimed 
a  superiority  over  painting  and  sculpture,  both 
of  which  may,  and  indeed  do  at  times  depict 
and  suggest  impurity.  This  blemish,  however, 
does  not  enter  into  music  ;  sounds  alone  (apart 
from  articulate  words,  spectacle,  or  descriptive 
programme)  must,  from  their  indefinite  nature, 
be  innocent.  Let  us  thank  God  that  we  have 
one  elevating  and  ennobling  influence  in  the 
world  which  can  never,  never  lose  its  purity  and 
beauty. 

And  now  I  have  come  to  the  end  of  telling  you 
the  thoughts  that  entered  my  mind  whilst  con- 
sidering my  address  to  you.  They  have  been 
somewhat  rambling  perhaps,  and  there  has  been 
no  intention  to  point  any  particular  moral.     I 


288  SIR   ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

have  endeavoured  to  show  you  how  England  was 
at  one  time  in  the  foremost  place  amongst  musi- 
cal nations,  and  I  would  now  only  urge  you  to 
use  all  your  efforts  to  restore  her  to  that  proud 
position.  The  means  lie  in  education.  We 
must  be  educated  to  appreciate,  and  appreciation 
must  come  before  production.  Give  us  intelli- 
gent and  educated  listeners,  and  we  shall  pro- 
duce composers  and  performers  of  correspond- 
ing worth.  Much  is  now  being  done  in  England 
for  the  higher  education  of  musicians.  At  the 
Royal  College  of  Music,  my  old  and  valued 
friend,  Sir  George  Grove,  is  doing  work  of  incal- 
culable value,  guiding  and  directing  with  unerr- 
ing judgment  his  splendid  staff  of  professors,  and 
imbuing  every  one  with  his  own  enthusiasm. 
Nor  must  we  forget  the  services  the  Royal  Acad- 
emy of  Music  has  rendered  to  musical  education, 
and  that  under  the  spirited  guidance  of  that 
gifted  musician.  Dr.  Mackenzie,  it  is  daily  in- 
creasing its  sphere  of  usefulness.  Many  other 
kindred  institutions  are  fighting  earnestly  and 
unflaggingly  the  battle  of  our  art,  and  to-night 
we  have  witnessed  the  result  of  that  sturdy  energy 
which  Birmingham  possesses  in  such  a  high  de- 


HIS   LIFE   STORY  289 

gree  in  the  prosperity  of  the  Midland  Institute, 
where  I  am  proud  to  see  that  musical  education 
plays  such  a  prominent  part.  I  read  on  the  list 
of  teachers  the  names  of  men  well  known  to  me 
— their  names  are  a  guarantee  that  the  instruc- 
tion is  sound.  But  there  is  one  particular  branch 
for  which  no  professor  is  appointed,  and  with 
good  reason,  for  I  am  sure  that  every  teacher  on 
the  staff  includes  it  in  his  instruction — namely, 
the  art  of  listening.  We  want  good  listeners, 
rather  than  indifferent  performers  ;  and  with  this 
little  moral  axiom,  and  with  my  warm  thanks  for 
the  great  compliment  you  have  paid  me  in  being 
yourselves  such  kind  and  attentive  listeners,  I 
will  conclude. 


SULLIVAN  AS  A  COMPOSER 

BY  B.  W.  FIN  DON 

TO  anticipate  posterity  is  a  hazardous  under- 
taking, and  a  most  invidious  task  is  it 
even  to  endeavour  rightly  to  place  a  man 
in  artistic  rank  among  his  contemporaries,  for, 
however  impartial  the  critic,  the  sympathetic 
leaning  of  his  nature,  due  to  association,  personal 
predisposition,  or  zealous  appreciation  of  what 
he  considers  pleasing  and  beautiful  must  inevi- 
tably sway  his  judgment.  If,  therefore,  there 
appears  in  this  short  critical  review  of  Sir  Arthur 
Sullivan's  life-work  an  admiration  which  others 
less  sympathetically  inclined  may  deem  excess- 
ive, the  writer  makes  no  apology,  begs  no  pardon, 
and  is  content  to  take  his  stand  on  opinions  that 
have  been  carefully  formed,  that  are  the  outcome 
of  an  intimate  acquaintance  with  the  works  under 
notice,  and  that  are  put  forward  with  an  honesty 
of  intention  born  of  sincere  conviction. 

Since  the  days  of  Purcell,  England  has,  hap- 

290 


AS   A  COMPOSER  291 

pily,  produced  many  estimable  musicians,  but  not 
one  who  is  more  closely  allied  in  spirit  to  that 
first  and  foremost  of  all  native  composers  than  Sir 
Arthur  Sullivan.  During  the  present  century  we 
have  known  the  facile,  fecund  genius  of  Michael 
William  Balfe,  and  the  finished  style  of  William 
Sterndale  Bennett ;  but  in  each  of  these  there 
was  a  quality  lacking,  and  this  minimised  the 
value  of  their  compositions  as  a  whole,  and 
forbade  them  that  unique  place  in  the  Temple  of 
Art  which  otherwise  might  have  been  theirs. 
But  in  Arthur  Sullivan  the  chief  characteristics 
of  these  two  men  are  united  with  the  happiest 
results :  with  the  one  he  shares  that  marvellous 
flow  of  spontaneous  melody,  and  with  the  other 
that  mastery  of  refined  and  carefully  chosen 
expression  which  gives  such  charm  to  his  various 
compositions.  True  it  is  that  Sullivan  studied 
under  Bennett  at  the  Royal  Academy,  and  from 
him  he  may  have  learned  the  more  subtle  graces 
which  go  so  far  to  enhance  the  solid  attractive- 
ness of  his  music  to  those  qualified  to  appreciate 
it  from  an  intellectual  aspect.  The  balance  of 
form,  the  peculiar  nicety  of  musical  phraseology 
have  ever  been  noticeable  in  all  that  Sullivan  has 


292  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

accomplished.  Let  the  hardened  and,  if  need  be, 
the  antagonistic  critic  search  his  works  through, 
and  he  will  not  be  able  to  put  his  hand  on  a 
slovenly  phrase  or  a  progression  that  is  not 
scholastically  correct  and  perfectly  designed  to 
illustrate  the  meaning  intended.  The  thought  at 
times  may  be  commonplace,  but  its  decoration 
gives  it  sterling  worth  ;  in  literature  the  placing 
of  words  is  next  in  importance  to  the  idea  they 
are  called  upon  to  set  forth,  and  the  same  re- 
mark applies  to  music.  This  faculty,  however, 
can  seldom  be  acquired  in  all  its  fullness ;  it  must 
be  born  in  the  man,  and  is  as  much  a  part  and 
parcel  of  his  nature  as  his  own  soul.  The  true 
poet  is  he  who  can  penetrate  the  mysteries  of 
nature,  and  by  his  power  of  expression  act  as  an 
interpreter  to  his  less  divinely  endowed  fellow- 
men  ;  the  true  composer  is  he  who  can  put  in 
tangible  form  the  music  of  our  souls,  the  tunes 
of  our  imagination.  This  is  he  who  gives  us  the 
songs  that  go  direct  to  a  nation's  heart,  the  melo- 
dies that  become  associated  with  the  innermost 
history  of  our  lives.  He  may  not  be  for  all  ages, 
he  may  only  be  of  contemporary  worth,  but  he 
has  some  share  of  the  divine  quality,  and  is  a 


ASACOM  POSER  293 

true  child  of  the  Muse.  It  is  within  this  hallowed 
circle  that  we  rank  Arthur  Sullivan.  He  has 
earned  his  position  by  deeds  which  have  won 
for  him  the  regard  and  the  love  of  the  whole 
English-speaking  race.  His  melodies  have 
winged  their  way  to  the  furthermost  corners  of 
the  earth,  and  found  a  welcome  resting-place  in 
the  affections  of  those  to  whom  the  old  country 
is  a  shrine  that  not  all  the  exotic  luxuriance  of 
southern  lands,  or  the  stern  beauties  of  more 
northern  latitudes  can  efface  from  their  recollec- 
tions ;  his  songs  are  known  to  the  hardy  pioneers 
of  civilisation  who  make  their  adventurous  way 
through  trackless  forests,  and  to  the  industrious 
settlers  who  are  as  laborious  and  determined  in 
their  living  as  those  pilgrims  of  the  Mayflowef 
who  laid  the  foundations  of  that  great  empire 
which,  once  an  integral  part  of  our  own,  is  now 
again  allied  to  us  in  the  strong  bonds  of  mutual 
good  faith  and  love.  Here,  then,  is  contempo- 
rary fame  almost  or  absolutely  unparalleled  in 
musical  history,  and  can  we  believe  that  a  talent 
so  universally  acknowledged  will  go  unappreci- 
ated by  succeeding  generations  ?  It  seems  im- 
possible, and  yet  prophecy  is  a  dangerous  and 


294  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

barren  form  of  amusement,  and  one  that  it  is  no 
imperative  duty  of  ours  to  indulge  in. 

Much  of  Sullivan's  popularity  is  due  to  the 
beautiful  spontaneity  of  his  work  ;  his  language 
is  simple,  clear,  and  direct,  as  all  great  language 
should  be,  and  therefore  it  is  understood  of  the 
people.  Though  nurtured  in  the  academies,  the 
force  of  his  own  individuality,  of  his  genius,  has 
kept  him  free  from  the  pedantic  narrowness  of 
professorial  writing,  while  at  the  same  time  he 
has  found  within  the  accepted  limitation  of  legiti- 
mate rules  ample  scope  for  the  expression  of  his 
fertile  imagination.  Unlike  the  extreme  modern 
school  of  to-day  he  has  not  deemed  it  necessary 
to  descend  to  the  barbarous  practices  of  those 
composers,  who,  having  no  inspired  utterance  of 
their  own,  so  twist  and  distort  the  phraseology 
of  music  that  their  work  not  infrequently  more 
nearly  resembles  the  uncouth  cries  of  wild  animals 
in  pain  than  the  coherent  speech  of  cultivated 
humanity.  Not  a  little,  however,  of  this  singular 
directness  and  gracefulness  of  expression  is  owing 
to  the  early  bent  of  his  studies  while  a  chorister 
at  the  Chapel  Royal,  for  there  Arthur  Sullivan 
had    the    opportunity   of    becoming    intimately 


AS   A   COMPOSER  295 

acquainted  with  the  compositions  of  the  great 
church  writers  of  the  seventeenth  century  ;  and 
with  his  quick  gift  of  perception,  his  ready  power 
of  assimilation,  it  is  not  surprising  that  he 
obtained  a  complete  mastery  of  their  lucid  style 
and  a  ripe  familiarity  with  the  canon,  fugue,  and 
mitation  which  form  so  important  a  part  in  their, 
compositions. 

But  now  let  us  glance  at  the  other  side  of  the 
shield.  Let  us  put  ourselves  in  the  position  of 
those  who  think  that  Sullivan  might  with  his 
great  gifts  have  accomplished  work  which  would 
have  placed  him  by  the  side  of  his  greatest  com- 
peers. Their  attitude  is  not  altogether  unrea- 
sonable. No  young  composer  ever  made  a  more 
brilliant  debut  than  did  he  at  the  Crystal  Palace 
when  his  "  Tempest "  music  was  performed,  and 
at  that  time  he  was  only  in  his  nineteenth  year. 
In  spite,  however,  of  his  juvenility  his  composi- 
tion was  mature  in  thought  and  form  ;  it  was  the 
accomplishment  of  a  perfectly  equipped  musi- 
cian. There  was  nothing  in  it  which  suggested 
that  the  composer  owed  his  success  to  a  lucky 
stroke  of  inspiration,  or  that  he  would  not  in  the 
future  be  able  to  write  something  equally  good, 


296  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

or  better.  His  symphony  in  E  flat  which  was 
given  a  hearing  at  the  same  place  five  years  later 
was  even  more  indicative  of  exceptional  talent, 
and  the  surmise  that  did  he  choose  to  confine 
himself  to  the  more  laborious  branch  of  his  art 
he  would  become,  at  least,  the  English  Men- 
delssohn, was  perfectly  justifiable.  Fortune, 
however,  smiled  on  the  young  composer.  To 
escape  the  drudgery  of  teaching  he  indulged  in 
the  more  agreeable  occupation  of  song  writing, 
and  he  at  once  touched  the  sympathies  of  the 
public  with  his  delightful  essays  in  this  direction. 
Society  took  him  to  its  bosom.  Royalty  extended 
to  him  a  flattering  hand  ;  he  was  not  called  upon 
to  tread  the  rugged  path  which  so  many  of  the 
world's  great  men  are  and  have  ever  been  com- 
pelled to  pace,  and  the  sunny  nature  of  his  dis- 
position found  itself  perfectly  at  home  in  the 
environment  which  spread  itself  about  him. 
With  few  exceptions  the  masterpieces  of  the 
world  have  been  the  outcome  of  an  intense  nerv- 
ous apprehension  of  its  ills,  if  not  of  actual  parti- 
cipation in  them.  Apart,  however,  from  the 
troubles  that  inevitably  attend  men  both  old  and 
young  in  the  course  of  their  earthly  pilgrimage, 


AS   A  COMPOSER  297 

there  was  nothing  in  the  earlier  life  of  Sullivan 
calculated  to  stir  the  deeper  emotions  within 
him.  The  death  of  his  father  first  touched  his 
affectionate  nature  to  the  quick,  and  that  resulted 
in  the  production  of  that  beautiful  example  of 
the  emotional  in  music,  the  "  In  Memoriam " 
overture.  Here  was  the  tangible  outcome  of  his 
gift  of  introspection ;  here  was  evidence  of  the 
latent  capacity  ;  why  was  it  not  developed?  But 
man  can  only  control  his  destiny  to  a  certain 
extent ;  the  strongest  of  us  are  but  toy  boats  on 
the  waters  of  life,  subject  to  its  swiftly  running 
currents,  and  to  varying  breezes.  And  what  he 
might  have  accomplished  in  abstract  art  had  he 
followed  its  course  it  is  difficult  to  say.  "  There's 
a  divinity  that  shapes  our  ends,  roughhew  them 
how  we  will,"  and  it  became  Arthur  Sullivan's 
end  to  minister  to  the  happiness  of  the  greatest 
number,  to  elevate  and  ennoble  a  lighter  form  of 
art,  instead  of  gratifying  the  exacting  desires  of 
the  comparative  few ;  and  much  as  may  have  been 
lost  in  the  process,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the 
world  at  large  has  gained.  The  pen  that  pro- 
duced "  Cox  and  Box  "  was  predestined  to  write 
"  The  Mikado,"  and  the   fortuitous  association 


298  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

with  Mr.  W.  S.  Gilbert  in  "Trial  by  Jury  "  had 
its  natural  outcome  in  the  series  of  comic  operas 
that  began  with  the  "Sorcerer"  at  the  Opera 
Comique  in  1877.  It  was  just  as  much  Sullivan's 
mission  to  write  such  music  as  it  was  Brahms'  to 
put  forth  sonatas  and  symphonies,  and  to  censure 
him  for  not  entering  into  rivalry  with  the  few 
great  composers  of  abstract  music  of  his  genera- 
tion is  as  fatuous  as  to  blame  Burns  for  not  hav- 
ing essayed  the  epic  form  of  Milton.  But  in  Sul- 
livan's case  it  was  an  easier  matter  for  him  to 
write  a  symphony,  as  he  showed,  that  should 
command  the  respectful  attention  of  critical  and 
exacting  minds  than  it  would  have  been  for  the 
two  or  three  men  who  have  composed  successful 
symphonies  during  the  past  thirty  years  to  have 
accomplished  a  comic  opera  of  the  excellence  of 
"  The  Yeoman  of  the  Guard."  Not  Brahms 
himself  could  have  brought  more  perfect  knowl- 
edge and  skill  to  bear  on  the  orchestration,  while 
as  for  the  ability  to  succeed  in  suiting  the  music 
to  the  words  there  is  no  man  of  his  time  so  hap- 
pily gifted. 

(It  is    the  consummate  mastery  of  his   art  as 
a  whole  that  has  enabled  Sullivan  to  achieve 


AS  A  COMPOSER  299 

success  in  his  lighter  music.  The  general  public 
have  realised  the  beauty  of  his  work,  they  know 
that  his  music  differs  from  all  other  music  they 
have  heard  in  the  theatre,  and  there  is  a 
something  in  connection  with  it  of  which  they 
are  conscious,  which  they  cannot  explain,  but 
which  gives  them  a  full  and  unique  measure  of 
sensuous  enjoyment.  The  people  have  their 
faults,  they  make  mistakes  in  plenty,  but  their 
judgment  is  right  in  the  long  run.  They  venture 
on  no  subtle  distinctions,  no  analysis  of  the  cause 
of  their  pleasurable  emotions;  they  are  content 
with  their  knowledge  of  the  fact,  even  as  they 
are  content  to  gaze  on  a  lovely  sunset  without 
bothering  their  heads  as  to  the  forces  of  nature 
which  produce  it.  But  there  are  others  who  do 
know  and  appreciate  the  marvellous  merit  of 
this  light  music  of  his,  and  others,  again,  who 
affect  towards  it  a  patronising  air  and  pityingly 
express  their  regret  that  Sullivan  should  waste 
his  time  on  such  ephemeral  work  ;  they  have 
even  been  known  to  describe  these  unique  mas- 
terpieces of  their  kind  as  "  pot-boilers,"  and  in 
other  ways  to  give  evidence  of  their  superior 
intellectual  equipment,  their  admiration  for  only 


300  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

that  which  is  severe  and  lofty  in  art,  and  in  some 
cases  they  have  even  boasted  of  their  entire 
ignorance  of  the  works  in  question.  Such  people 
are  the  curse  of  the  musical  world,  for  their 
whole  existence  is  based  on  a  point  d'orgue  of 
cant,  and  they  are  all  but  dead  to  the  healthy 
sensibilities  of  rational  life.  What  a  pity  it  is 
that  we  have  not  some  Pied  Piper  who  could 
periodically  pipe  such  people  away  to  the  cavern- 
ous depths  of  a  specially  appointed  Koppenberg, 
where  their  punishment  would  be  to  listen  to  the 
eternal  playing  of  neglected  masterpieces  by 
unknown  composers! 

Fortunately,  however.  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan's 
reputation  does  not  depend  on  his  success  in 
either  department  of  music  alone.  If  we  except 
chamber-music — for  the  few  fugitive  pieces  he 
has  written  for  the  piano  can  scarcely  count — he 
has  worked  and  achieved  distinction  in  ways  as 
various  as  Purcell  himself,  but  we  confess  to  a 
lingering  regret  that  he  made  no  efforts  in  the 
direction  of  the  instrumental  quartette.  With 
his  delicate  appreciation  of  all  that  is  essentially 
lovely  in  music,  with  his  consummate  mastery  of 
instrumental  effects,  with  the  immense  capacity 


AS   A   COMPOSER  301 

he  has  shown  for  four  and  five  part  harmony,  his 
technical  skill  in  counterpoint,  we  should,  in  all 
probability,  have  been  endowed  with  work  that 
might  have  occupied  an  honoured  place  by  the 
side  of  similar  compositions  by  Mendelssohn, 
Schubert  and  others,  who  have  left  behind  for 
the  enjoyment  of  posterity  so  many  delightful 
examples  of  one  of  the  purest  and  most  sensitive 
branches  of  musical  art.  To  speculate  on  the 
might  have  been  is,  however,  one  of  the  least 
profitable  exercises  of  the  mind,  and  Sullivan  has 
given  mankind  so  much  that  is  worthy  of  consid- 
eration that  we  can  well  afford  to  overlook  his 
lack  of  effort  in  this  particular  groove.  It  is 
only  because  he  has  accomplished  so  much 
that  we  desire  more  and  have  a  greedy 
propensity  for  pandering  to  an  ever-increasing 
appetite.} 

v,As  it  is  the  present  day  fashion  to  detach  a 
composer's  life  into  periods  we  shall  review  Sul- 
livan's work  from  three  points  of  view,  which  may 
be  classified  as  the  Sacred,  the  Secular,  and  the 
Dramatic.  It  was  in  the  domain  of  church  art 
that  he  first  displayed  the  signs  of  a  creative 
talent  which  was  afterwards  to  bear  such  rich 


302  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

fruit,  and  which  has  to  a  certain  extent  coloured 
all  his  subsequent  endeavours.  Even  in  his 
operas  we  find  it  sprouting  forth,  sometimes 
with  a  peculiarly  touching  effect  and  at  others 
with  that  subtle  strain  of  humour  that  is  ever 
enchanting  without  being  offensive.  No  better 
example  of  this  latter  can  be  found  than  in  the 
ecclesiastical  accompaniment  which  attends  the 
presence  of  Friar  Tuck  through  "  Ivanhoe,"  his 
most  ambitious  operatic  attempt.  Here  the 
broad  harmonies  and  cadences  of  the  church  are 
employed  with  such  refined  taste,  with  such 
dramatic  appropriateness,  that  it  is  impossible 
for  the  most  fastidious  to  take  offence.  Again, 
we  have  the  delightful  parody  of  the  Handelian 
style  in  the  martial  music  given  to  Arac  and  the 
Three  Knights  in  the  third  act  of  "  Princess  Ida." 
Then,  too,  the  results  of  his  studies  of  the  old 
English  masters  are  equally  obvious  in  the  glees 
and  madrigals  which  abound  in  his  operas,  and 
nothing  more  perfect  of  its  kind  exists  than  his 
humorous  parody  of  the  glee  of  the  latter  end  of 
the  seventeenth  century  in  "  A  British  Tar  is  a 
soaring  soul,"  in  the  first  act  of  "  H.M.S.  Pina- 
fore."    But  these  are  points  which  may  be  more 


AS  A  COMPOSER  303 

fittingly  discussed  when  we  arrive  at  the  dramatic 
section  of  his  work.  Reference  is  now  only 
made  to  them  in  order  to  illustrate  his  remarka- 
ble aptitude  for  putting  acquired  knowledge  to 
practical  use.  There  are  many  composers  who 
are  as  theoretically  well  equipped  as  Sullivan, 
but  lack  this  serviceable  power,  just  as  there 
are  learned  men  at  our  universities  whose  minds 
are  stored  with-the  philosophy  of  ages,  but  lack 
the  inestimable  gift  of  being  able  to  commu- 
nicate their  mental  wealth  to  their  fellow-men, 
and  who,  for  the  most  part,  are  walking  encyclo- 
paedias with  two-thirds  of  their  leaves  stuck 
together.  With  this  general  reference  to  Sulli- 
van's work  we  may  now  proceed  to  deal  with  it 
more  in  detail;  with  this  reservation,  his  achieve- 
ment will  be  measured  by  his  more  important 
contributions  to  musical  literature,  and  no 
attempt  will  be  made  to  survey  the  complete  list 
of  his  compositions,  or  to  indulge  in  a  technical 
analysis  which  would  be  as  mystifying  and  un- 
profitable as  it  would  be  uninteresting  to  the 
general  reader,  to  whom  dullness  is  the  one 
unpardonable  crime  in  an  author  or  reviewer/ 


SACRED  MUSIC 

IN  his  career  as  a  composer  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan 
has  enjoyed  two  advantages  which  do  not 
fall  to  the  lot  of  the  many,  and  both  of  which 
have  largely  influenced  his  work.  In  the  first 
place  he  was  cradled  to  the  sound  of  the  military 
band,  and,  secondly,  he  was  made  to  study  music 
from  a  practical  standpoint  at  an  age  when  most 
boys  are  more  versed  in  the  gentle  arts  of  hop- 
scotch and  leap-frog.  His  earliest  footsteps  took 
him  to  the  practice  room  of  his  father's  soldier 
musicians  at  Sandhurst,  and  there  began  his 
intimate  acquaintance  with  instrumental  music, 
while  as  a  chorister  at  the  Chapel  Royal  he  was 
initiated  into  the  fine  vocal  excellences  of  com- 
posers who  remain  unsurpassed  in  their  contribu- 
tions to  our  choral  literature.  Seldom,  indeed, 
have  such  unique  opportunities  been  presented  to 
one  so  eminently  favoured,  and  seldom  have  they 
been  turned  to  better  advantage.  It  really 
seemed  that  the  gods  were  bent  on  adding  to  the 

304 


SACRED   MUSIC  305 

gift  of  a  great  natural  talent  all  the  accessories  of 
musical  art  for  daily  consumption  with  his  bread 
and  butter,  that  his  receptive  and  intellectual 
faculties  generally  should  be  taught  to  assimilate 
musical  form  and  sound  with  that  unconscious 
certainty  which  is  one  of  the  blessings  of  pre- 
cocious childhood.  It  is  impossible  to  exaggerate 
the  importance  of  this  association  with  instru- 
mental music  from  his  infancy,  for  he  then 
undoubtedly  possessed  himself  of  a  practical 
knowledge  that  stood  him  in  good  stead  when  he 
was  called  upon  to  pursue  his  theoretical  studies, 
and  in  later  years  enabled  him  to  score  his  works 
with  a  readiness  and  exactitude  that  largely 
accounts  for  the  spontaneous  quality  of  his  com- 
positions and  their  apposite  instrumentation.  Nor 
could  any  training  have  been  better  adapted  to 
Sullivan's  characteristic  bent  as  a  second  course 
than  that  which  he  received  as  a  chorister  at  the 
Chapel  Royal.  Spread  out  before  him  were  the 
masterpieces  of  Tallis,  Byrd,  and  Gibbons;  of 
Pelham  Humphreys,  Blow,  and  the  immortal 
Purcell;  of  Boyce,  Battishill,  Attwood,  and  a 
score  of  others  who  have  bequeathed  to  us  music 
which  will  co-exist  with  the  English  Church,  and 


3o6  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

perhaps  survive  it.  The  sacred  motet  or  anthem 
and  the  hymn  tune,  brought  into  prominence  by 
Luther,  became  an  integral  part  of  the  church 
service  from  the  early  years  of  Elizabeth,  and 
with  these  glorious  examples  before  him  it  was 
only  to  be  expected  that  Sullivan  would  try  his 
prentice  hand  at  imitation.  Church  music,  there- 
fore, forms  no  inconsiderable  feature  of  his  life's 
work,  and,  to  put  aside  the  youthful  exercises  in 
this  direction,  he  is  responsible  for  two  services, 
a  score  of  anthems  and  miscellaneous  pieces,  and 
about  fifty  hymn  tunes,  to  which  must  be  added 
his  more  important  festival  productions.  His 
anthems  are  characterised  by  the  best  attributes 
of  their  kind,  and  are  well-known  in  all  choirs  and 
places  where  they  sing  ;  while  some  of  his  hymn 
tunes  are  familiar  to  well-nigh  every  cottage  home, 
in  fact,  his  "Onward,  Christian  Soldiers,"  might 
almost  be  described  as  the  war  song  of  the  English 
Church  Militant  of  the  nineteenth  century.  We 
may  now  pass  on  to  Sullivan's  more  ambitious 
devotional  music. 

If  Englishmen  have  not  been  wholly  nurtured 
on  hymns,  anthems,  chants,  and  oratorios,  there  is 
no  doubt  that  their  musical  proclivities  owe  not  a 


SACRED   MUSIC  307 

little  of  their  peculiar  bent  to  those  forms  of  com- 
position. To  our  forefathers,  indeed,  the  music 
of  the  parish  church  was  the  mainstay  of  their 
knowledge  of  the  art,  and  music  and  the  Bible 
were  so  associated  in  their  minds  that  the  way 
was  made  easy  and  clear  for  the  oratorios  of 
Handel  and  Haydn,  Bach  and  Mendelssohn. 
The  words  appealed  to  their  religious  instincts, 
and  the  music  supplied  a  picturesque  colouring 
which  gratified  their  sensuous  cravings;  the  same 
causes  are  at  work  to-day,  and  so  it  is  that  certain 
oratorios  are  still  in  the  zenith  of  their  popularity 
with  middle-class  England,  and  will  remain  so 
while  we  are  a  church-loving  nation.  Naturally, 
therefore,  almost  every  English  composer  has 
essayed  this  form  of  composition,  or  its  half- 
brother,  the  cantata,  and  it  is  scarcely  necessary 
to  say  that  Sullivan  is  numbered  among  the  eager 
aspirants  for  honours  in  this  direction.  Emerson 
has  said  that  "  The  sweetest  music  is  not  in  the 
oratorio,  but  in  the  human  voice  when  it  speaks 
from  its  instant  life  tones  of  tenderness,  truth,  or 
courage.  The  oratorio  has  already  lost  its  relation 
to  the  morning,  to  the  sun,  and  the  earth,  but  that 
persuading  voice  is  in  tune  with  these."     By  this 


3o8  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

we  are  to  understand  that  we  have  lost  the  free- 
dom of  form,  the  infinite  essence  of  true  art,  the 
sweet  flowing  fountain  of  invention  and  beauty. 
The  severe  critic  would  probably  say  much  worse 
of  the  oratorio  that  owes  its  birth  to  contemporary 
endeavour,  and  it  is  an  undoubted  fact  that 
England  has  not  produced  a  simple  composer  who 
has  given  to  the  world  a  work  of  the  enduring 
quality  of  the  "  Elijah,"  and  only  one  who  has 
produced  something  on  a  smaller  scale  that  rivals 
in  popularity  and  merit  Mendelssohn's  "Hear  my 
Prayer." 

Sullivan's  first  oratorio  was  "  The  Prodigal 
Son,"  which  was  produced,  at  the  Worcester 
Festival  of  1869.  In  this  work  he  broke  new 
ground  and  made  a  very  satisfactory  attempt  to 
do  justice  to  his  own  genius  and  to  show  that  he 
was  capable  of  sustained  effort  in  a  class  of  com- 
position that  tries  the  strength  of  a  man  almost 
beyond  any  other  form  of  vocal  and  instrumental 
work.  The  music  of  "  The  Prodigal  Son"  is 
intensely  devotional  and  the  composer  makes  no 
attempt  to  sever  himself  from  the  religious  aspect 
of  the  subject,  while  the  choruses,  as  might  be 
expected,  are  admirable  exhibitions  of  sacred 


SACRED   MUSIC  309 

writing.  That  the  work  is  now  only  heard  at 
long  intervals  is  no  disparagement  to  its  worth 
as  a  composition,  for  although  the  oratorio-loving 
public  will  courteously  listen  to  novelties,  perhaps 
give  a  grateful  ear  to  them  a  second  time,  their 
standard  is  the  "  Messiah"  and  "  Elijah,"  and 
unless  an  oratorio  has  the  captivating  power  of 
Handel, orthe  mellifluousqualityof  Mendelssohn, 
it  has  no  chance  of  being  even  temporarily  en- 
rolled among  the  people's  favourites. 

"The  Light  of  the  World,"  a  more  ambi- 
tious and  elaborate  oratorio  was  produced  at 
the  Birmingham  Festival  of  1873,  where  both  it 
and  the  composer  met  with  a  flattering  reception. 
To  maintain  the  peculiar  quality  of  sacred 
music  throughout  a  long  and  diffuse  text  restrains 
within  too  narrow  a  limit  a  gift  which  leans  so 
closely  to  the  dramatic  as  Sullivan's;  but  again 
we  are  constrained  to  admire  the  wonderful  art 
of  the  part-writing  and  the  beauty  of  the  orches- 
tral accompaniments.  A  fine  illustration  of  his 
accomplishment  in  the  direction  of  concerted 
vocal  music  is  the  imposing  chorus,  "  I  will  pour 
my  spirit,"  while  his  more  delicate  method  is 
well  instanced  by  the  grateful  children's  chorus, 


3IO  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

"  Hosanna  to  the  Son  of  David  ";  and  his  exqui- 
site handling  of  four  and  five  part  harmony  is 
adequately  shown  in  the  unaccompanied  quar- 
tette and  quintet.  A  somewhat  singular  feature 
in  connection  with  this  work  is  that  it  presents 
Jesus  in  the  first  person,  and  an  inner  orchestra  is 
provided  especially  to  accompany  the  utterances 
of  the  Saviour,  which  throughout  are  of  a  par- 
ticularly solemn  character.  "  The  Light  of  the 
World"  may  not  take  rank  with  the  highest 
examples  of  oratorio  art,  but  its  undoubted 
merits  entitle  it  to  an  honoured  and  intimate  com- 
panionship with  its  more  favoured  brethren.  It  is 
a  member  of  the  same  family,  it  has  the  noble 
traits  of  a  great  inheritance;  but  it  is  of  the 
younger  branch  and  once  removed  from  the 
direct  line  of  succession.  Its  production  gave  an 
additional  cachet  to  the  composer's  fame,  and  its 
musicianly  qualities  will  certainly  not  lessen  his 
reputation  in  the  eyes  of  the  student  of  the 
future. 

Only  a  few  composers  have  been  successful  in 
producing  pieces  d' occasion  that  have  in  them 
sufficient  merit  to  stand  the  test  of  an  initial  per- 
formance, and  it  would  not  have  been  surprising 


SACRED   MUSIC  311 

if  Sullivan's  Festival  "Te  Deum "  had  shared 
the  usual  fate  of  these  hasty  works  of  art,  more 
especially  when  it  is  borne  in  mind  that  it  was 
presented  under  difficulties  which  would  have 
handicapped  any  work  whatsoever.  To  celebrate 
the  recovery  of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  the  Crys- 
tal Palace  Company  organised  an  enormous  fete 
and  commissioned  Mr.  Sullivan  to  write  the  hymn 
of  praise  which  was  to  be  sung  in  testimony  of 
the  people's  gratitude  for  the  return  to  health  of 
the  heir  to  the  English  throne.  The  perform- 
ance of  the  "Te  Deum"  took  place  in  that 
section  of  the  Palace  which  is  utilised  for  the 
purpose  of  the  Handel  Festival,  in  the  presence 
of  a  large  audience  that  it  would  be  a  wild 
stretch  of  fancy  to  describe  as  musical  or  as  in 
any  way  capable  of  appreciating  fine  musical 
work.  The  very  circumstances  of  the  day  were 
unpropitious  for  the  presentation  of  a  new  and 
unfamiliar  work,  for  the  people  had  foregathered 
as  to  a  national  fete  of  which  the  "  Te  Deum" 
was  but  an  incident  among  many  others  more 
alluring  to  the  public  mind.  The  first  perform- 
ance of  Berlioz's  "  Symphonie  Funebre "  was 
scarcely  given  under  worse  conditions  ;  but  the 


312  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

merits  of  the  "  Te  Deum "  were  sufficiently 
obvious  to  the  appreciative  few,  and  although 
seldom  heard  in  the  metropolis  we  know  of  its 
repeated  performance  by  small  choral  societies 
to  the  simple  accompaniment  of  pianoforte  and 
harmonium.  One  of  the  most  characteristic 
features  of  the  work  is  the  ingenious  way  in 
which  the  composer  has  manipulated  the  well- 
known  St.  Anne's  hymn  tune;  the  contrapuntal 
writing  to  be  found  in  the  "  Finale "  is  quite 
remarkable,  while  a  striking  effect  is  obtained  by 
the  use  of  a  military  band  for  the  "  Domine 
Salvam  fac  Reginam." 

We  now  pass  from  the  strictly  sacred  work  of 
Sullivan  to  another  phase,  which,  however,  is  so 
closely  allied  to  the  sacred  that  it  may  well  be 
included  under  that  heading.  The  sacred  or 
dramatic  cantata  has  the  advantage  of  offering 
the  composer  a  wide  scope  for  the  exercise  of 
his  talent  and  less  restriction  in  the  matter  of 
form  and  style.  He  is  more  at  liberty  to  follow 
the  dictates  of  fancy  and  to  colour  his  work  with 
the  hues  of  a  vivid  imagination.  That  Sullivan 
should  recognise  the  suitability  of  the  dramatic 
poem  to  his  particular    requirements  after  the 


SACRED   MUSIC  313 

striking  success  that  had  attended  his  efforts  on 
the  stage  was  only  to  be  expected,  and  the  pro- 
duction of  "  The  Martyr  of  Antioch "  at  the 
Leeds  Festival  of  1880  fully  justified  his  expecta- 
tions. The  work  achieved  an  instant  success 
and  its  frequent  performance  is  sufficient  testi- 
mony to  its  abiding  charm.  Last  year  the  Carl 
Rosa  Opera  Company  had  the  cantata  adapted 
for  stage  purposes,  and  some  very  effective 
representations  were  given  in  the  leading  pro- 
vincial cities.  The  air  "  Come,  Margarita,"  has 
long  since  become  popular  with  tenors  for  con- 
cert room  purposes,  and  another  solo  number 
which  is  strongly  attractive  is  the  contralto  air 
"  lo  Paeon,"  with  its  peculiarly  quaint  accom- 
paniment. One  of  the  most  important  numbers 
is  "  The  Hymn  to  Apollo,"  which  takes  up 
seventy-two  pages  of  the  vocal  score  and  is  a  fine 
example  of  Sullivan's  scholarly  attainment  and 
original  charm. 

The  next  work  of  its  kind  was  "  The  Golden 
Legend,"  which  was  produced  at  the  Leeds 
Festival  of  1886  with  a  success  so  pronounced,  so 
striking,  so  unequivocal  that  its  like  had  not 
been  witnessed   for   half   a   century,   not  since, 


314  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

indeed,  Mendelssohn  conducted  his  "  Elijah  "  at 
the  Birmingham  Festival  of  1846.  To  slightly 
alter  a  phrase  of  Balzac's  with  regard  to  Victor 
Hugo,  we  might  remark  of  "The  Golden 
Legend,"  "  It's  a  great  work;  let's  say  no  more 
about  it."  For,  whatever  variety  of  opinion  there 
maybe  with  regard  to  Sullivan's  other  ambitious 
endeavours,  there  can  be  no  two  opinions  with 
respect  to  the  qualities  that  make  his  second, 
and  unfortunately  up  to  the  present  time,  his  last 
cantata  popular  in  every  town  and  district  of  the 
United  Kingdom.  In  this  work  Sullivan  reaches 
his  highest  level  of  utterance.  Nothing  in 
English  modern  art  surpasses  it;  nothing  equals 
it;  nothing  even  approaches  it  in  beauty  of  design, 
conciseness,  symmetry,  execution,  and  achieve- 
ment. It  stands  unique  among  compositions  of 
its  class.  The  master  hand  grips  the  attention 
from  the  moment  the  original  and  thoughtful 
writing  of  the  prologue  falls  on  the  ear  and  holds 
it  to  the  last  strain  of  its  choral  epilogue.  The 
music  allotted  the  respective  characters  is  so  dis- 
tinctly characteristic,  so  dramatically  appropri- 
ate, so  teeming  with  suggestiveness,  that  we  do 
not  find  in  it  one  superfluous  bar,  one  unneeded 


SACRED   MUSIC  315 

note.  How  beautifully  tender  are  the  numbers 
in  which  Elsa  is  engaged;  how  abundantly  clever 
the  orchestration  that  accompanies  Lucifer;  how 
quaint  the  mixture  of  monkish  chant  with 
Satanic  malignity,  how  almost  cloyingly  sweet 
the  unaccompanied  hymn  "O  Gladsome  Light"! 
In  short,  the  marvellous  completeness  of  the 
cantata  justifies  the  enthusiasm  with  which  it 
has  been  received,  and  however  much  of  Sulli- 
van's work  may  find  its  way  into  the  Wallet  of 
Oblivion  we  may  surely  assume  that  "The 
Golden  Legend  "  will  live  as  a  worthy  memorial 
of  musical  art  during  the  Victorian  era  and  as  a 
lasting  tribute  to  the  genius  of  its  most  popular 
composer. 


SECULAR  AND  DRAMATIC  MUSIC 

NO  review  of  Sir  Arthur  Sullivan's  music 
would  be  complete  without  some  few 
special  comments  on  the  songs  which  did 
so  much  so  make  his  name  popular  with  the  Eng- 
lish public  three  decades  ago.  We  have  always 
been  a  ballad-loving  nation,  and  the  list  of  com- 
posers who  have  left  behind  them  worthy  exam- 
ples of  the  art  of  song  writing  is  extremely 
lengthy  and  varied.  But  in  the  middle  part  of 
the  present  century  the  old  virility  and  charm  of 
song-making  had  seemingly  vanished,  and  at 
a  time  when  we  were  beginning  to  be  inundated 
with  the  mawkish  sentimentality  of  the  drawing- 
room  ballad,  Sullivan  appeared  on  the  scene, 
and  by  his  art  and  engaging  qualities  did  not  a 
little  to  bring  back  the  taste  of  the  public  to 
something  more  nearly  akin  to  that  which  pre- 
vailed in  the  early  part  of  the  century,  when 
Henry  Bishop  was  chief  among  a  very  able  num- 
ber of  composers,  who  were  largely  influenced 

316 


SECULAR  AND   DRAMATIC   MUSIC     317 

by  Purcell  and  his  immediate  successors.  To  the 
melodious  beauty  of  the  old  English  ballad,  Sul- 
livan added  the  finish  and  refinement  of  modern 
workmanship,  and  most  satisfactory  to  the  musi- 
cal mind  are  his  Shakesperean  songs,  his  setting 
of  the  Tennyson  series — "  The  Window;  or,  The 
Loves  of  the  Wren,"  and  "  O,  fair  dove."  But  it 
is  an  invidious  task  to  mention  merely  a  few  out 
of  a  collection  that  numbers  close  on  one  hun- 
dred and  with  such  melodies  -ringing  in  the 
mind  as  "  Once  Again,"  "  Let  me  dream  again," 
"Looking  Back,"  "  O,  ma  charmaijle,"  "The 
Distant  Shore,"  to  say  nothing  of  ■'  The  Lost 
Chord,"  of  which  more  than  a  quarter  of  a 
million  copies  have  been  sold,  and  which  still 
charms  and  captivates  English-speaking  audi- 
ences the  whole  world  over.  In  his  songs  there 
is  the  same  careful  attention  to  musicianly  details, 
the  same  apt  fancy  for  arriving  at  appropriate- 
ness of  thought  and  expression,  which  charac- 
terises his  more  elaborate  and  ambitious  work  ; 
and  although  he  does  not  always  succeed  in 
maintaining  the  same  high  level  of  achievement, 
there  is  not  one  among  them  to  which,  great  as 
his  reputation  now  is,  he  need  be  ashamed  of 


3i8  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

seeing  his  name  attached.  In  his  part  songs  he 
was  equally  conscientious  and  equally  success- 
ful, and  there  is  scarcely  an  amateur  vocalist 
who  is  not  acquainted  with  "  O,  hush  thee,  my 
babie." 

And  now  it  becomes  our  duty  to  consider  the 
works  which,  when  all  is  said  and  done,  stand  for 
a  memorial  of  Sullivan's  accomplishment  in  ab- 
stract art,  and  as  indicative  of  what  he  might 
have  achieved  had  he  taken  a  wholly  ideal  view 
of  his  mission  in  life,  and  pursued  it  with  unhes- 
itating firmness  and  persistency.  Even  those  of 
us  who  are  his  warmest  admirers,  who  recognise 
the  great  service  he  has  accomplished  in  doing 
what  he  has  done  for  comic  opera,  who  still 
delight  lovingly  to  pursue  our  way  through  the 
vocal  scores  of  "  Pinafore,"  "  Patience,"  and  the 
others  of  that  wonderful  series,  occasionally 
dwell  pensively  and  sometimes  sadly  on  the 
little  he  has  given  us  of  that  higher  beauty 
which  one  might  almost  say  transcends  art, 
and  approximates  the  grander  products  of 
nature.  And  yet  who  could  wish  "  The  Gondo- 
liers "  unwritten?  Pondering  over  Sullivan's 
career  is  like  sitting  on  two  stools,  and  the  ulti- 


SECULAR  AND   DRAMATIC   MUSIC     319 

mate  choice  of  either  would  leave  us  frankly  dis- 
satisfied. We  would  not  be  without  our  Savoy 
reminiscences,  and  yet  we  would  have  him  clas- 
sically allied  with  Beethoven  and  Bach  and 
sharing  their  domain  ;  in  short,  to  take  an  illustra- 
tion from  nature  herself,  we  would  that  we  could 
liken  him  to  those  mountains  of  the  Cordilleras 
which,  having  their  base  in  a  torrid  zone  and 
their  peaks  in  the  snowy  clouds,  pass  through 
the  varying  temperatures  of  the  spheres,  their 
sides  bedecked  with  the  herbaceous  growths  of 
every  latitude.  But,  perhaps,  in  our  enthusiasm 
and  admiration  for  his  talent  we  over-estimate 
his  limitations;  perhaps  he  himself  has  gauged 
them  more  accurately  and  from  a  more  modest 
standpoint.  In  choosing  as  he  did,  whether 
actuated  by  art  or  profit,  it  matters  not  which, 
he  has  attained  as  near  perfection  as  possible, 
and  better  is  it  for  man  to  do  something  super- 
latively, irreproachably  well  than  something 
which  his  fellows  can  equal,  and  which  his  pred- 
ecessors have  surpassed.  Let  us,  therefore, 
descend  from  the  misty  heights  of  speculation, 
and  come  direct  to  the  more  material  subject  of 
actual  accomplishment. 


320  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

The  production  of  his  "  Tempest"  music  at  the 
Crystal  Palace  in  1862  was  rightly  hailed  at  the 
time  as  a  significant  epoch  in  the  history  of  Eng- 
lish musical  art.  It  was  the  work  of  a  boy  of 
eighteen,  and  yet  to  the  astutest  critic  there  were 
no  signs  of  inexperience,  crudity,  or  ill-digested 
thought.  Chronicling  the  production,  H.  C. 
Chorley,  the  eminent  critic,  remarked  "  that  there 
has  been  no  such  first  appearance  in  England  in 
our  time,"  and  we  can  well  understand  by  the 
light  of  performances  in  our  own  day  the  effect 
the  composition  must  have  had  on  an  audience  as 
visibly  impressed  by  the  youthfulness  of  the  com- 
poser as  by  the  remarkable  quality  of  his  work. 
vThat  the  "  Tempest"  music  strongly  reflects  the 
influence  of  Mendelssohn  detracts  in  no  way 
from  its  captivating  merit.  Mendelssohn  at  the 
time  Arthur  Sullivan  was  a  student  at  Leipzig 
was  almost  as  paramount  as  Wagner  is  at  pres- 
ent, and  his  winning  personality  added  not  a  lit- 
tle to  the  dominion  he  held  over  the  musical  stu- 
dents of  the  middle  part  of  the  century.  But  the 
listener  of  to-day  can  easily  discern  in  the  work 
the  characteristics  that  have  marked  Sullivan's 
music  throughout  his  whole  career,  and  which 


SECULAR  AND   DRAMATIC  MUSIC    321 

belong  to  himself  and  to  none  other.  If  we 
simply  take  as  an  example  the  shipwreck  music 
of  the  third  act,  we  have  the  familar  charm  of 
his  orchestration,  the  quaint  fancy  and  conceit  of 
a  mind  devoid  of  vulgarity ;  or  again,  in  the 
admirable  prelude  to  act  five,  we  have  that  poet- 
ical and  mysterious  sweetness  which  has  ever 
been  a  noticeable  feature  of  Sullivan's  sedater 
moments.  His  incidental  contributions  to  the 
Shakespearean  literature  include  the  delightful 
music  to  the  masque  in  the  "  Merchant  of  Venice," 
a  work  that  was  performed  at  the  recent  Leeds 
Festival,  and  wholly  fascinated  an  audience 
which  was  astonished  at  the  freshness,  the  charm, 
and  the  modernity  of  the  composition.  The 
"  Henry  VIII."  music,  equally  delightful,  main- 
tains its  position  in  the  concert  programme ; 
while  the  overture  to  the  "  Macbeth  "  music,  com- 
posed for  the  Lyceum  in  1888,  is  a  remarkably 
majestic  and  impressive  piece  of  writing.  Men- 
tion must  also  be  made  of  the  "  Marmion"  over- 
ture, and  the  graceful  and  melodious  "  Overture 
di  Ballo,"  which,  composed  for  the  Birmingham 
Festival  of  1870,  remains  one  of  his  most  popular 
works.    Allusion  has  previously  been  made  to 


322  SIR   ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

the  "  In  Memoriam"  overture  and  the  source  of 
its  inspiration,  and  a  brief  return  need  only  be 
made  to  it  for  the  purpose  of  drawing  special 
attention  to  the  pathetic  beauty  of  the  work  as  a 
whole  ;  its  combination  of  pious  hope  and  poign- 
ant grief,  and  its  wonderfully  impressive  finale, 
wherein  the  organ  joins  the  instrumental  family 
with  all  the  grandeur  of  its  breadth  and  power. 
There  are  some  few  weak  moments  in  the  second 
movement,  but  he  must  be  a  stony-hearted  cynic 
indeed  who  can  listen  to  its  performance 
unmoved,  or  fail  to  realise  in  its  religious  spirit 
the  active  current  of  man's  best  emotional 
instincts. 

The  year  of  the  "In  Memoriam,"  1886,  also 
saw  the  production  of  the  Symphony  in  E  minor, 
which  has  been  erroneously  termed  the  "  Irish  " 
Symphony,  This  is  the  most  ambitious  effort 
Sullivan  has  made  in  the  pure  regions  of  abstract 
art,  and  its  recent  performances  at  the  Crystal 
Palace  enabled  not  a  few  to  appreciate  at  a  much 
higher  value  his  remarkable  talent.  The  work 
was  composed  when  Sullivan  was  but  twenty-two 
years  of  age,  and  its  aesthetic  bearing  seems  to 
have  been   induced  by  a  visit  to   Ireland,   for 


SECULAR  AND   DRAMATIC   MUSIC     323 

although  the  Hibernian  title  is  denied  it,  yet 
there  is  sufficient  internal  evidence  to  show  that 
it  contains  the  evidence  of  Irish  character,  not,  it 
might  be  said,  a  difficult  thing  for  Sullivan  to 
accomplish,  seeing  he  was  but  speaking  the 
language  of  his  race.  /In  its  various  movements 
there  is  to  be  found  the  plaintive  chord  of  sad- 
ness, the  irrepressible  and  ebullient  humour,  the 
strange  contradiction  of  melancholy  and  mirth, 
the  close  association  of  laughter  and  tears,  which 
are  typically  characteristic  of  the  Celt,  and  only 
a  composer  of  keen  dramatic  instinct  could  have 
invested  his  theme  with  such  psychological  truth- 
fulness. Sullivan,  in  this  symphony,  writes  with 
the  authority  of  a  master,  the  form  and  sym- 
metry of  classic  design  must  have  been  his  by 
natural  inspiration,  as  we  have  here  a  complete 
work  of  its  kind,  full  of  intellectuality,  and  lack- 
ing in  no  indication  of  creative  greatness.  Music 
is  not  made  by  Rule  of  Three,  but  produced,  as 
Socrates  said  of  the  poet's  achievement,  "  under 
the  influence  of  enthusiasm,  like  prophets  and 
seers."  Alas !  it  is  the  only  symphony  the  com- 
poser has  given  us,  and  it  is  too  late  in  the  day 
to  expect  that  he  will  make  good  the  deficiency. 


324  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

Sullivan's  dramatic  music  is  so  well  known,  and 
its  fine  qualities  are  so  generally  admitted,  that  it 
almost  becomes  a  work  of  supererogation  to 
deal  with  it  from  a  critical  point  of  view,  and  the 
purposes  of  this  review  will  be  served  by  lightly 
touching  on  a  few  of  its  salient  features,  for  to 
dwell  on  the  detailed  charm  of  all  that  excites 
our  admiration  in  his  brilliant  series  of  comic 
operas  would  be  to  begin  with  Bouncer's  song  in 
"  Cox  and  Box,"  and  end  with  the  final  chorus 
in  "The  Beauty  Stone."  The  one  fact,  however, 
which  may  be  driven  home  in  the  minds  of  the 
unthinking  is  their  superiority  to  any  works  of 
the  kind  that  any  composer  of  native  birth  has 
produced,  and  we  might  go  further  and  include 
alien  musicians.  What  Boieldieu  did  for  opera 
comique  in  France  at  the  beginning  of  the  cen- 
tury Sullivan  has  done  for  comic  opera  in  Eng- 
land at  its  end.  It  used  to  be  the  fashion  to  dub 
him  "  the  English  Offenbach,"  a  compliment  to 
the  Frenchman  certainly,  but  except  in  one  partic- 
ular the  two  are  as  distinct  in  quality  as  the  Pari- 
sian diamond  and  the  genuine  crystal  of  nature. 
Given  a  favourable  light  the  one  sparkles  with 
almost  the  brilliancy  of  the  other,  but  a  fairly 


SECULAR  AND   DRAMATIC   MUSIC    325 

competent  judge  is  quickly  able  to  distinguish 
the  meretricious  from  the  true,  the  artistically 
beautiful  from  the  merely  alluring.  Offenbach 
has  the  same  free  fancy  for  inventing  melody, 
but  his  talent  has  its  affinity  in  the  cafechantant, 
while  Sullivan's  is  instinct  with  the  charm  of  an 
eminently  refined  nature  ;  added  to  which  he  has 
that  technical  mastery  of  his  craft  which  Offen- 
bach never  possessed.  Seldom,  indeed,  has  poet, 
painter,  or  musician  ever  succeeded  more  com- 
pletely in  achieving  the  art  of  concealing  art. 
The  instrumental  scores  of  his  comic  operas  are 
as  complete  and  as  perfect  in  their  way  as  the 
masterpieces  of  Beethoven  and  Brahms ;  they 
abound  with  every  indication  of  ripe  scholarship, 
with  a  wealth  of  the  most  delicious  melody,  and 
they  have  the  rare  quality  of  a  humour  so  gen- 
uinely racy,  so  opposed  to  the  vulgarisms  which 
had  hitherto  been  allowed  to  pass  muster,  that 
Sullivan  may  almost  be  credited  with  the  dis- 
tinction of  inventing  a  new  and  delightful  phase 
of  art. 

It  was  our  original  intention  to  have  touched 
briefly  on  the  leading  features  of  each  opera,  but 
on  reflection  that  course  appears  unnecessary. 


326  SIR  ARTHUR   SULLIVAN 

The  words  of  approval  suited  to  the  one  are 
equally  adapted  to  each  of  the  others.  The  rich 
vein  of  ore  that  was  discovered  in  "  Cox  and 
Box"  runs  through  the  remainder  of  the  series, 
for  in  the  little  operetta  he  wrote  in  collaboration 
with  Mr.  F.  C.  Burnand  he  sprang,  after  the 
manner  of  Minerva,  full-grown  and  fully  armed 
into  the  world  of  comic  opera.  "  Cox  and  Box  " 
is  as  complete  in  its  way  as  "  The  Mikado,"  and 
the  essential  characteristics  of  the  one  are  the 
essential  characteristics  of  the  other.  "  H.M.S. 
Pinafore "  was  the  work  which  unquestion- 
ably first  gave  Sullivan  and  Gilbert  their  world- 
wide reputation,  and  "  The  Yeoman  of  the 
Guard  "we  hold  to  take  the  highest  rank  as  a 
work  of  art,  although  from  a  musical  point  of 
view  "  Ruddigore,"  the  least  successful  of  the 
series,  runs  it  very  close.  Special  attention  may 
be  directed  to  the  wonderful  orchestration  of  the 
"dream  "song  in  "  lolanthe,"  and  this  done  we 
may  cease  to  explore  and  explain  the  obvious. 
In  "Haddon  Hall"  a  more  pretentious  stand  was 
taken,  and  again  in  "  The  Beauty  Stone,"  and 
each  work  bears  the  unmistakable  stamp  of  Sul- 
livan, although  they  are  not  distinguished  by  any 


SECULAR  AND   DRAMATIC   MUSIC     327 

new  features  which  call  for  special  notice.  In 
"Ivanhoe,"  however,  Sullivan  undoubtedly  es- 
sayed a  distinctly  higher  form  of  art,  and  his 
music  is  characterised  by  a  much  more  ambi- 
tious fancy  ;  but  like  so  many  of  his  predecessors 
he  was  handicapped  by  the  nature  of  the  libretto, 
and  this  has  told  against  the  permanent  success 
of  the  work.  Its  orchestration  is  extremely  able 
and  appropriate,  the  vocal  part-writing,  although 
somewhat  simple  in  texture,  is  very  charming, 
and  from  a  lyrical  point  of  view  the  work  is 
wholly  delightful.  The  Templar's  love  song  in 
C  flat  in  the  third  scene  of  act  two  is  the  best 
example  of  passionate  writing  that  Sullivan  has 
accomplished,  and  the  duet  which  follows  it  is  so 
strikingly  beautiful  and  powerful  that  it  would 
scarcely  be  exceeding  the  bounds  of  discretion 
to  describe  it  as  the  finest  to  be  found  in  the 
whole  range  of  English  opera. 

Enough  has  now  been  said  of  Sullivan's  work 
for  contemporary  purposes;  what  the  judgment 
of  posterity  will  be  we  have  no  manner  of  know- 
ing. In  years  to  come  it  may  be  thought  that 
the  diadem  which  might  have  adorned  the  fair 
brow  of  our  English  Muse  has  not  received  its 


328  SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN 

adequate  equivalent  in  the  golden  treasure  that 
has  been  given  to  the  world  for  the  past  three 
decades.  But  this  much  may  be  said  in  reply. 
Sullivan's  comic  opera  music  has  made  the  world 
healthier  and  happier;  it  has  given  exquisite 
pleasure  to  myriads  of  his  race;  it  has  cheered 
the  family  circle  and  lightened  the  burden  of 
many  a  wearisome  day.  And,  this  acknowledged, 
can  it  be  said  that  he  has  misused  his  great  gift, 
that  he  has  not  fulfilled  his  artistic  mission;  that 
he  has  failed  to  put  to  good  purpose  his  "  five 
talents"  ?  The  academical  and  the  pedantic  may 
regret  that  he  did  not  confine  himself  more 
devotedly  to  the  path  of  abstract  art;  but  how 
many  more  have  rejoiced  at  the  rapturous  notes, 
the  blissful  melody,  the  gush  of  harmonious 
sound  that  have  been  borne  on  the  bosom  of 
enchanted  winds  to  the  four  corners  of  the 
earth ! 


APPENDIX 


COMPRISING   A   COMPLETE   LIST  OF 

SIR  ARTHUR  SULLIVAN'S 

WORK 


COMPILED  BY  WILFRID   BENDALL 


330 


APPENDIX 


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APPENDIX 


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334 


APPENDIX 


SERVICES,  ANTHEMS,  CAROLS,  AND  PART  SONGS. 


Title. 

Description. 

Publisher. 

Date. 

When  Love  and  Beauty. 

Madrigal. 

Novello. 

1863 

pub- 
lished 

i8q8 

O  Love  the  Lord. 

Anthem. 

1 1 

1864 

We  have  heard  with  our  ears. 

,, 

1865 

Te  Deum,  Jubilate  and  Kyrie. 

Service. 

- 

1866  & 
1872 

The  Rainy  Day. 

Part  Song. 
(S.A.J.B.) 

•• 

1867 

0  Hush  Thee,  My  Babie. 

M 

,, 

j^ 

0  Taste  and  See. 

Anthem. 

,, 

1868 

Rejoice  in  the  Lord. 

,, 

Boosey. 

>i 

Evening. 

Part  Song. 
(S.A.J.B.) 

Novello. 

11 

Joy  to  the  Victor. 

>> 

j^ 

1 1 

Parting  Gleams. 

,, 

II 

Echoes. 

J, 

,, 

Song  of  Peace  (from  On  Shore 

and  Sea). 

I  Sing  the  Birth. 

)» 

Boosey. 

.. 

Sacred 

Part  song 

(S.A.J.B.) 

The  Long  Day  Closes. 

Part  song 
(S.A.J.B.) 

Novello. 

II 

The  Beleaguered. 

,, 

ji 

Sing,  0  Heavens. 

Anthem. 

Boosey. 

1869 

All  this  Night. 

Carol. 

Novello. 

1870 

0  God,  Thou  Art  Worthy. 

Anthem. 

J 

1871 

I  Will  Worship. 

,, 

Boosey. 

,, 

It  came  upon  the  Midnight. 

Sacred 
Part  song 
(S.A.J.B.) 

>> 

" 

Lead,  Kindly  Light. 

,, 

,, 

„ 

Through  Sorrow's  Path. 

,, 

II 

II 

Watchman,  what  of  the  Night  ? 

tf 

The  Way  is  Long  and  Drear. 

,, 

,, 

Festival  Te  Deum  (see  Table  B). 

•• 

" 

" 

APPENDIX  335 

Services,  Anthems,  Carols  and  Part  Songs— Continued. 


Title. 

Description. 

Publisher. 

Date. 

r 

Choruses 

adapted 

Turn  Thee  Again. 

from 

Boosey. 

1874 

Mercy  and  Truth. 

Russian 
Church 

Music. 

I  Will  Mention. 

Anthem. 

1, 

1875 

Upon  the  Snowclad  Earth. 

Carol. 

Metzler. 

1876 

Hearken  unto  Me. 

Anthem. 

Novello. 

1877 

I  will  Sing  of  Thy  Power. 

,, 

,, 

Turn  Thy  Face. 

,, 

11 

1878 

Who  is  Like  unto  Thee  ? 

^  ^ 

1883 

Hark,  what  means  ? 

Carol. 

Patey 
Willis. 

•• 

Wreaths  for  our  Graves. 

Anthem. 

Novello. 

1898 

SONGS,  ETC. 


Publisher.      Date 


0  Israel  (Sacred) 

Bride  from  the  North 

1  heard  the  Nightingale  .... 

Arabian  Love  Song 

Orpheus  with  his  Lute 

O  Mistress  Mine 

Sigh  no  more,  Ladies 

The  Willow  Song 

Sweet  Day,  so  Cool 

Rosalind 

Over  the  Roof  (from  The    Sapphire    Neck- 
lace)       

Thou  art  Lost  to  Me 

Will  he  Come  ? 

A  Weary  Lot  is  Thine 

If  Doughty  Deeds 

She  is  not  Fair  to  Outward  View  . 

County  Guy 

The  Maiden's  Story 


Novello. 
Cramer. 
Chappell. 

Metzler. 


Cramer. 
Boosey. 

Chappell. 

Boosey. 
Ashdown. 
Chappell. 


1855 
1863 

1866 


1867 


336 


APPENDIX 
Songs,  Etc. — Continued, 


Give 

In  the  Summers  Long  Ago    . 

afterwards 
My  Love  beyond  the  Sea 
What  does  Little  Birdie  Say  ? 
The  Moon  in  Silent  Brightness 
O  Fair  Dove,  O  Fond  Dove  . 

0  Sweet  and  Fair  .... 

1  Wish  to  Tune  my  quiv'ring  Lyre 
The  Snow  lies  White      . 
The  Mother's  Dream 
The  Troubadour      .... 
Birds  in  the  Night  (from  Cox  and  Box, 

different  words)   .... 
Sad  Memories  .... 

Dove  Song 

A  Life  that  Lives  for  You 

The  Village  Chimes 

Looking  Back  .... 

The  Window;  or  the  Loves  of  the  W 

cycle  of  twelve  songs  . 

Once  Again 

Golden  Days 

None  But  I  can  Say 

Guinevere 

The  Sailor's  Grave 
The  Maid  of  Arcadia  (from  Thespis) 
There  Sits  a  Bird    .... 
Looking  Forward    .... 
The  Young  Mother  (three  songs)  . 
The  Days  are  Cold 

afterwards 
Little  Darling,  Sleep  Again  . 

Ay  di  Mi 


The  First  Departure 

afterwards 
The  Chorister .        .        .        . 
O  Ma  Charmante    . 
O  Bella  Mia  (Italian  version) 


,  with 


ren. 


Publisher; 


Boosey. 
Metzler. 

Ashdown. 

Metzler. 
Ashdown. 

Boosey. 


Metzler. 
Boosey. 


Strahan. 
Boosey. 

Cramer. 


Boosey. 

Cramer. 

Metzler. 
Cramer. 
Metzler. 
Cramer. 

Metzler. 
Cramer. 


Date. 


1867 


1868 


1869 


1870 


1871 
1872 


1873 


1876 

1873 
1876 

1873 
1878 
1873 


APPENDIX 

Songs,  Etc. — Continued. 


337 


Name. 


Publisher. 


Date. 


Sweet  Dreamer 

Two  songs  in  The  Miller  and  his  Men  : 

(drawing-room  entertainment) 
The  Marquis  de  Mincepie 
Finale 
Nel  Ciel  Sereno  (Merchant  of  Venice)  . 

Venetian  Serenade 

Sleep,  my  Love,  Sleep 

Mary  Morison 

The  Distant  Shore 

Thou  art  Weary 

My  Dear  and  only  Love         .... 

Living  Poems 

Tender  and  True 

Christmas  Bells  at  Sea    ..... 
The  Love  that  Loves  me  not 
Love  laid  his  Sleepless  Head 

Let  me  Dream  Again 

Thou'rt  Passing  Hence 

Sweethearts 

My  Dearest  Heart 

Sometimes 

The  Lost  Chord 

When  Thou  art  Near 

I  Would  I  Were  a  King  .... 

King  Henry's  Song  (from  Henry  Vin.) 
Morn,     Happy    Mom    (trio)     (in    the     play 

Olivia)  .  

Old  Love  Letters 

St.  Agnes'  Eve 

Edward  Gray 

The    Sisters   (duet)   (originally  published  in 

the  Leisure  Hour) 

In  the  Twilight  of  our  Love  (from  Patience, 

with  different  words) 

A  Shadow        


Ever 


I'tu  Nol  Sai    \  (^°  t^®  P^^y  °^  ^^^  Profligate) 


Cramer. 


Bosworth. 
Boosey. 

Chappell. 

Boosey. 

I » 
Chappell. 
Novello. 

Boosey. 

Chappell. 

Boosey. 


Metzler. 

Boosey. 
S.  Lucas. 


Chappell. 
Patey 

Willis. 
Chappell. 


Bid  me  at  Least 


1873 


1874 


187: 


1876 
1877 

1877 

1878 


1879 
1880 
1881 


1887 
1889 
1S94 


338 


APPENDIX 

HYMN  TUNES. 


Name. 

Where  first  PubUshed. 

Publisher. 

Date. 

Hymn  of  the 

Good  Words. 

Strahan 

1867 

Homeland. 

(afterwards 

Boosey). 
Macmillan. 

Thou  God  of 

Book  of  Praise  H3minal. 

1867 

Love. 

Of  Thy  Love. 

»>                     )> 

,, 

Mount  Zion. 

Psalms  and  Hymns  for 

Nisljet. 

Divine  Worship. 

^ 

Formosa 

Psalms  and  Hymns  for 

(Falfield). 

Divine  Worship. 

St.  Luke. 

Psalms  and  Hymns  for 
Divine  Worship. 

>> 

>» 

The  Strain 

Brown  Borthwick's 

Novello. 

1868 

Upraise. 

Supplemental  Hymn 
and  Tune  Book. 

The  Son  of 

Brown  Borthwick's 

f  1 

God. 

Supplemental  Hymn 
and  Tune  Book. 

Hymn  of  the 

— 

Boosey. 

,, 

Homeland. 

Gennesareth 

(Heber). 

Lacrymas,  222. 

Sarum  Hymnal. 

— 

1869 

The  Hymnary. 

Novello. 

1872 

Lux  Mundi,  225. 

,, 

)> 

Saviour,  when 

in  Dust,  249. 

Welcome, 

91 

Happy  Morn- 

ing, 284. 

St.  Revin,  285. 

}> 

Onward,  Chris- 

>) 

tian  Soldiers 

(St.  Gertrude), 

476. 

Safe  Home,  507. 

Gentle 

99 

Shepherd,  509. 

Angel  Voices, 

99 

532. 

Propior  Deo, 

»J 

570. 

APPENDIX 

Hymn  Tunes — Continued. 


339 


Name. 

Where  first  Published. 

Publisher. 

Date. 

Venite  (Rest), 

The  Hymnary. 

Novello. 

1872 

597- 

St.  Edmund,  646 

,1 

,, 

Christus,  496. 

Church  Hymns  with  Tunes 

S.P.C.K. 

1874 

Ccena  Domini, 

'I                    >} 

207. 

Coronao,  354. 

,, 

Dulce  sonans, 

J, 

316. 

Ever  Faithful. 

,, 

414. 

Evelyn,  390. 

,, 

Golden 

,, 

Sheaves,  281. 

Hanford,  400. 

,, 

Holy  City,  497. 

,, 

Hushed  was 

,, 

the  Evening 

Hymn  572. 

Litany,  585. 

•' 

..       592- 
Paradise,  473. 

" 

Pilgrimage,  367. 

,, 

Resurrexit,  132. 

,, 

St.  Francis,  220. 

,, 

St.  Nathaniel, 

,, 

257. 

Saints  of  God, 

,, 

191. 

Ultor  Omni- 

,, 

potens,  262. 

Valete,  30. 

,, 

Veni,  Creator, 

,, 

346. 

St.  Mary 

,, 

Magdalene,  494. 

Lux  in  Tenebris, 

,, 

409. 

Lux  Eoi,  67. 

,, 

St.  Patrick,  144. 

,, 

St.  Theresa,   566. 

•■ 

340 


APPENDIX 

Hymn  Tunes — Continued. 


Name. 

Where  first  Published. 

Publisher. 

Date. 

(Also  seven 
tunes  specially 
adapted  or 
arranged. ) 
Dominion 

Hymn. 

Courage, 

Brother. 

O  King  of  Kings 

(Bishopgarth) 

Church  Hymns  with  Tunes 

S.P.C.K. 

Chappell. 

1874 
1880 

Good  Words. 

Written  by  command  for 
the  Queen's  Jubilee. 

Strahan. 

Eyre  and 

Spottis- 

woode, 

afterwards 

Novello. 

1882 
1897 

WORKS  FOR  PIANO. 

Name. 

Thoughts,  two  pieces  for  piano  solo    . 

Afterwards  published  as 

Reverie  in  A ) 

Melody  in  D \ 

The  same  arranged  for  piano  and  violin 

Day  Dreams,  six  pieces  for  piano  solo  . 

Twilight 

Duo  concertanto  for  piano  and  'cello 


Publisher. 


Cramer. 

Phillips 
and  Page. 

Phillips 
and  Page. 

Boosey. 

Chappell. 

Lamborn 

Cock. 


1862 


1867 
1868 


PRINTED  BY  R.  R.  DONNELLEY 
AND  SONS  COMPANY,  AT  THE 
LAKESIDE  PRESS,  CHICAGO,  ILL. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  AT  LOS  ANGELES 

THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 


APR  2  8  1943 

IVIAY  2  6  1943 
F5:6-4G1944 


QCl  10  1945 


JAN  3  5  m^ 

m  2  3 194S 


« 1 1  Ihmi 

HUG  7     1958 

■O^rW     4  1954 
OCT  «  I  \9» 

^APR  1  5  'SI 


Form  L-0 
20m-l,'-12(851«> 


AUG  t  6  '58  All 
AUG  3    '58 


Pw 


1t1» 


AS6Z' 


UNiVEKSlTY  OF  CAUFOftNU 

AT 

LOS  ANGELES 


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MUSIC 

ML 

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S95L4 


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